The Swiss Chocolate Affair
by dreaddpirate-grayson
Summary: AU. It's never a good sign when you miss the school bus on your first day of senior year, even more so when you're forced to hitchhike with a complete stranger, despite your grand fear of loud, diesel-fuelled vehicles. No matter - you're Maka Albarn, female Shakespeare in the flesh. You can deal with guys like Soul Evans, who's starting to become your personal Batman.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi, guys :) This is my first Soul Eater fanfic...so I hope did okay... If you have time, please leave a kind review :) This story will have Soul/Maka, Black*Star/Tsubaki, and I'll decide who with Kidd later on...unless you guys have a preference..**

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><p><strong><em>Chapter One<em>**

_Oh, crap_ _did my alarm go off?_

Apparently not, as Maka Albarn soon discovered upon recognizing the time on the clock.

07:30.

Half an hour to shower, eat breakfast, pack her bag, brush her teeth, do her hair, put on her boots, grab her keys, and start the _twenty minute_ walk to school. On the first day.

_Oh, crap_.

The ash-blonde girl closed her eyes tightly and counted to 10. And after 10, she bolted out of bed and injected her daily dose of glucose through her tummy. Then she sprinted to the shower, heating up the water as she sped downstairs to the kitchen to turn on the coffeemaker. Breakfast would have to be missed today, she decided. As long as she got to school on time, the most important meal of the day would always come second place.

Once the coffeemaker started brewing, she ran upstairs again, grabbing her towel from the hangers and quickly shut the bathroom door.

She came out again in a record ten minutes, getting dressed in another two, and doing up her hair in two petite pigtails for sixty precious seconds. Her heart pounded in her chest as she heard the telltale huff and puff outside, signalling the arrival of the school bus.

"I'M COMING!" she yelled out the window, spotting the bored bus driver checking his watch, unfazed. He hadn't heard her.

Maka trekked downstairs yet again to collect her coffee, setting it down only once to lace up her black leather boots. _There's still time. I can make it. _

She whooped in triumph when she had laced the second boot, picking up her coffee again and rushing out of the door, keys jangling from her fingers, her forest green rucksack hanging on one shoulder. "Bye, mom! Bye, dad!" she shouted, only to be met with silence. _I made it_.

Wrong. As soon as she got outside, the school bus was a world away; there was no time to catch up to it. Maka fearfully glanced at her silver watch. 07:57.

She would have made it on time if she had caught the bus, and she could have walked if her alarm had woken her up. No, this was not a great start to the new school year. Especially not for Maka Albarn, girl with the 4.0 GPA.

Maka stared at the empty space where the bus had been ten seconds ago, her entire body trembling in defeat and disappointment. Perfect student Maka Albarn? More like Epic Failure Doofus.

Well, there was no hope in running to catch the first school bell. She would just have to walk and shoulder the pain of a late slip. On the first day.

Tears pricked her eyes as she shrugged her rucksack back on her shoulder, the silence of the neighbourhood doing nothing to console her.

That is, until she heard the dreaded _vroom_ of one of those blasted machines. It was painfully becoming louder, creating a buzz in Maka's ears as she tried to shut her eyes and count to 10.

After 10, she opened them again.

She screamed. Two amused red eyes stared at her intently, a smirk playing on the owner's lips.

"Don't make me spill this coffee over you!" she screeched, viridian eyes flaring in fury. The boy's red eyes widened as Maka raised her cup over his head, and he held up his hands in surrender.

"Hey, hey, calm down, weirdo, coffee spilling is _not cool_," he said, inching away from her step-by-step. His hands touched the orange monster beside the curb, making Maka's furious eyes falter in fear. Of course he noticed.

"You scared me. I'm sorry. It's just not my day today," she confessed, eyes glued to the shiny 'Eater' emblazoned on the orange vehicle. "If you could just take that thing with you, we'll go on our separate ways and forget this ever happened."

The boy quirked an eyebrow. "You sure? Aren't you going to the DCHS?"

At last her eyes darted over to the boy again, this time scrutinizing him fully. The boy was definitely taller than her, but she was certain they were in the same year. He had spiky white hair swept to one side, a thin black hairband flattening it down somewhat. His red eyes were half-lidded, creating an aloof and lazy persona.

Maka's eyes squinted in annoyance. _Slacker_.

"You done checking me out?" he grinned devilishly. "Since it's obvious you go to the DCHS as well, why don't you hitch a ride on Eater with me?"

_Eater? Is that supposed to be the name of his bike or something? Gross. So encouraging._

Wait. "You said 'as well'…" Maka pointed out. "_You_ go to the DCHS?" _This guy is bluffing. There's no way…_

He only shrugged. _The nerve!_ "I have my connections. You must be the scholarship chick, _and_ it wouldn't make a good impression if the new girl arrived late to school _on her first day_," he remarked, stressing his words as if he was talking to a six-year-old.

Maka fumed. "There's no way I'm getting on that monster," she pointed to the orange Ninja Kawasaki ZX6R (as it said on the side).

The red-eyed boy made a show of checking his watch. "07:58," he whistled, grinning. "I know _I'll_ make it on time. Don't know about you." He turned to climb onto the vibrantly coloured motorbike, immediately starting the engine and startling Maka with its loudness. "Suit yourself, new girl."

"WAIT," Maka all but screamed. The boy craned his neck to look back at her, the same smirk plastered on his face, pointy teeth glaring at her in mockery. Her shoulders deflated as her heart beat faster. In fear. "Fine. Pass me the helmet." She held out her hand but it was left empty. "What?! You don't have a helmet?! No way! No way in _hell_."

The boy rolled his eyes. "_Suit yourself_." He turned again.

"No, no, _no_! Wai—"

"MAKE UP YOUR DAMN MIND, WOMAN!"

"Fine! I'll – I'll get on," Maka stammered. It seemed like it was an eternity before she was finally seated on the bike. "Shit. What fuel do you use?"

"Um...Diesel?"

Maka internally screamed. _No, Maka, stay calm. You can deal with this. You've dealt with worse things before._

Suddenly, the image of a white hospital room flashed in her mind and she willed it away, not wanting to be reminded of it.

"Are you ready? We only have two minutes until the first bell," the boy chuckled. Maka narrowed her eyes at the back of his head, sending him a death glare. "So…you better hold on to me real tight."

Something clicked in her frazzled brain. "Hold…on? Where?"

"To my penis, of course." Maka blanched. "NO, _idiot_, to my friggin waist!" A pair of hands grabbed hers and hastily wrapped them around his waist securely. Calloused hands. Musician's hands. She'd know those kinds of hands anywhere.

She made a move to make a note of it but decided against it, only focusing on the task before her.

"Secure?" he asked. Maka nodded. "Finally. We'll get to school on time, if you don't mind your hair being a bit ruffled."

Maka closed her eyes then, preparing for the worst.

The engine roared.

Maka screamed.

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><p>At the <em>very, very, very <em>least she made it to school on time. The first bell rang as soon as the stranger boy parked his bike. It was okay, she told herself. Her perfect record would not be tarnished.

She was still alive.

But barely.

The ride to school left her shaking and completely traumatized. So much so that she could not feel her legs or her hands. She didn't know whether this was a symptom of her condition or simply because her entire face had been blown off by the sheer intensity of the wind as the boy sped towards the perfectly symmetrical establishment of the Death City High School.

She didn't care.

She was here. At school. On time. On the first day. Nothing could make her happier.

"Earth to new girl," his voice cut through her thoughts. "Aren't you going to get off Eater?"

She scrambled her brain for a witty comeback, but it was too shocked to respond. Instead, she forced her legs to move, staggering out of her seat.

"Shook you up that much, eh?" he chuckled lowly. He mounted off as well, shoving his hands into the deep pockets of his leather jacket. "Since you're new, I'll take you as far as the office, but from then on, you're on your own."

_As always_, Maka bitterly thought. She shook her head to erase it from her mind. "Yeah. That'd be cool. Thanks," she mumbled.

He stared at her for a heartbeat, wondering if he should wait for her after he took her to the office. "You sure you're okay?" he said. Maka nodded, speechless. The boy shrugged. "Okay, then. Follow me."

The ash-blonde girl did as she was told.

When they entered the grand building of DCHS, Maka felt her knees weaken. This was it. She was in the best high school in the entire country. The school her parents attended. The best place to start over. Where no-one knew her name as of yet.

Inhale. Exhale.

"Hello, may I help you two? Class has started," a sultry, female voice called them over to the front desk.

"Yo, Ms. Blair," the boy greeted the busty, purple-haired secretary. She winked in response. "This is the new girl. I'd show her around but Stein will dissect me if I turn up late to his lesson." He turned to Maka. "Well, you made it. See you around, new girl."

With that, he stalked off to the direction of the science labs. Maka watched him go with fascination. Guys like him…aren't supposed to be nice to girls like her… Maka smiled. Sometimes it's nice to be proven wrong.

"Well, let's see here, Ms. Albarn?" Ms. Blair interrupted her thinking. "Amazing! Taking all AP and honour classes with a 4.0 GPA? Good luck with that, I'm sure you're an extremely hard worker." She winked, her cat-like eyes gleaming. "Here's your timetable, and a map of the school. Since you're already acquainted with that crazy boy over there, it'd be good to find him at some point during the day if you ever get lost. He's too 'cool' to leave anyone helpless."

The green-eyed girl nodded twice. "Thank you, Ms. Blair."

"No problem, Maka," she flashed her a grin. "Your first lesson is with Ms. Marie Mjölnir. She's really nice. If you turn over that corner, it's the third door to your right." She pointed to the opposite direction where the red-eyed boy had gone.

Maka started walking, the sound of her boots tapping on the floor strangely comforting her.

It was only when she entered the classroom that she realized one thing.

She didn't get his name.

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><p><strong>AN: I hope you liked the first chapter ;)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you all for the positive responses! You guys make my heart flutter ;)**

**Animandaxd and Annabelle, thank you for your reviews! They make my day :)**

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><p><em><strong>Chapter Two<strong>_

"Good morning, students! Today we have a new fantabulous historian joining our ranks, so please be nice."

Maka grimaced at the way this woman was smiling at her. Marie was definitely eccentric, wearing clothes that touched the floor; one would think she would be an arts teacher and not an historian. Her long blonde hair was nicely kept and shapely, but the most distinctive of her features was the eye-patch that covered one of her caramel eyes. Yep, definitely eccentric.

"Please, introduce yourself to the class," she continued, gently encouraging her with a smile.

Maka nervously touched her elbows. "Hi, I'm Maka Albarn and I like books," she mumbled, almost inaudibly.

Ms. Marie had clearly sensed her discomfort and immediately clapped her hands. "Well, then, students. Let us begin the lesson. Maka, please take your seat next to Tsubaki." A girl with long black hair and teal eyes raised her hand to make herself known to Maka. She made her way next to her.

"Hi, I'm Tsubaki," the girl whispered once Marie started to write 'EARLY COMPLEX SOCIETIES UNIT 1' on the board.

Maka smiled in response. "I'm Maka, nice to meet you. Which page are we on?"

Tsubaki leaned over to point to the page. "Right here." Maka muttered a quick 'thanks' before tuning back into the lesson. Marie was showing them pictures of the prehistoric age, from cavemen drawings to Stonehenge, and Maka was deeply fascinated by them.

"Now, I know you're going to dread this," cue in the groans, "but tomorrow you will have a little quiz on the topics you've learnt today. Make sure to go over the Bronze Age extra carefully tonight, because you never know what will come up on the test," she winked with her right eye, causing her classmates to chorus in a chuckle.

Just then, the bell rang and there was a shuffle of movements hurrying to pack their things for the next lesson. For Maka, it was like being pulled out of a trance. One that Tsubaki had to somewhat snap her out of.

"What's your next lesson, Maka?" she asked, voice as sweet as the Swiss chocolate that Maka stashed inside her rucksack.

"Um…" the ash-blonde glanced at the pieces of paper Ms. Blair had given her. "I have Biology with…Professor Stein next, what about you?"

"Oh, I have Art." She noticed Maka's lips tug into a frown. "But it's okay, you can sit with me and Kid at lunch if you want to."

"Really?" Maka beamed. Tsubaki nodded. "I'd love to."

Tsubaki giggled girlishly. "You're welcome. I'll see you at lunch. And don't be too creeped out in Biology." With that, the black-haired girl exited the classroom, leaving Maka and Ms. Marie alone.

"Don't take what the students say about Stein to heart, Maka," Marie commented, adding in a small smile, as if she was reminiscing. "He's a nice, intelligent man, if a little crazy at times."

"I'll make sure to tell him that, Ms. Marie," Maka joked, her shyness slowly dissipating now that she had made a friend.

Marie's cheeks gradually flushed to a deep shade of red. "W-What? N-No…you _wouldn't_…" she stammered, eyes glistening over.

Maka giggled. "I was just kidding, Ms. Marie. I won't. I promise."

The teacher breathed a sigh of relief, face returning to their normal colour. "I'll see you tomorrow, Maka."

"Bye, Ms. Marie!" she half-sang as she made her way to the science labs.

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><p>"Well ,well, class, it seems we have an interesting new addition to the specimen cabinet of AP Biology," the professor chuckled to himself. Like Marie, he appeared incredibly out-of-this-world, and Maka started to wonder if all the teachers were either creatively intense or just downright deranged.<p>

The professor had silver hair despite looking no older than thirty-five with a giant metal screw implanted to the side of his head. He wore transparently-rimmed glasses and a white lab coat with haphazard stitching embroidered on the fabric. He was the definition of a living, breathing mad scientist.

"Why don't you take a seat next to Black Star? That should keep him in check for the rest of the year," Stein grinned and turned back to the board.

_That, or everyone else is completely scared of you_, Maka shuddered internally. She turned to the class but had no idea who Black Star was. "Um…sir?"

"Hm?" Stein replied, not taking his eyes off the board.

"I don't know who Black Star is…"

Suddenly, a boy with electric blue hair launched himself onto one of the lab desks, an accusatory finger pointed straight at her. From the corner of her eye, Maka saw Stein's eyes twitch dangerously.

"YOU! DO YOU KNOW WHO YOU'RE SPEAKING TO?! _I _AM BLACK STAR, GOD OF DEATH CITY HIGH SCHOOL," he yelled with pride. "You should be _honoured_ to be in my presence let alone be my lab partner!"

Maka's throat dried as soon as all eyes were on her. "U-Um…o..._kay_?"

Black Star's eyes narrowed but slowly pointed away his finger. "That's all you have to say to a _god_?"

"Sit down, Black Star or I shall be forced to take out my surgery equipment," Stein sharply cut in. Maka saw the boy's face pale in colour and he hurriedly launched himself back down to his seat, eyes dilated. _Wow, everyone is pretty much terrified by him_. "Well, you have your answer, Maka. Take your seat."

The green-eyed girl stumbled towards the desk that Black Star had previously stood on. He was still glaring at her. "You're not worthy to sit next to the Great Black Star," he whispered roughly, although it was loud enough for Stein to hear.

"What did I say, Black Star?"

"Yes, Professor Stein, sir!"

Grumbling, he shifted to his left to give her space. "You're safe…_for now…_" he cackled lowly. Maka rolled her eyes.

"So…before we get into the exciting part of the lesson, can anyone name me the four Eukaryotic Kingdoms?"

"It's only the first lesson, how are we supposed to know that?" a student at the front groaned.

Maka face-palmed. _I'm in a room full of slackers. The lot of them._ She raised her hand confidently.

"Yes, Maka?" said Stein, amusement laced in his tone.

"The four Eukaryotic Kingdoms are Fungi, Animalia, Plantae and…" Maka racked her brain for the last one. "OH, and Protista!"

Stein smirked. "And that's how it's done, kids," he remarked. "Now, who can give me an example of a species belonging to the Kingdom Plantae?"

Black Star nudged her as Stein continued with the lesson. "Psst," he insisted. "_Psssssst_."

"What do you want?" Maka groaned silently.

He crossed his arms defiantly. "That's no way to speak to your superior."

"_Fine_," Maka hissed, turning her attention back to the phylogeny of the animal kingdom.

"Hey, don't ignore me!"

"Black Star. For the last time, if you interrupt my lesson again, you will be stuck with me for an hour after school, and who knows what I'll do to you…" Stein snarled darkly.

Black Star gulped.

And so it was for the rest of the lesson.

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><p>If Maka's stomach could say anything at this very moment, it would be screaming, "FEED ME!" across the school canteen.<p>

The place was packed, as Maka so dutifully observed, and there was no sign of Tsubaki anywhere she looked. She was starting to feel hopeless when she felt a tap on her shoulder.

She turned her head to see a boy who was as tall as her with short black hair streaked with three horizontal white stripes on one side. His amber eyes locked onto hers. "You must be Maka Albarn," he stated, almost disinterestedly. Maka nodded, sending her pigtails flailing. "Tsubaki will be here in a minute. She's just finishing up her composition. If you'd care to follow me to our table…"

Maka nodded. _This must be Kid_. She obediently allowed herself to be led to a circular table in the middle of the cafeteria, amidst a sea of hungry seniors. "So…are you Tsubaki's boyfriend or something?" Maka inquired as they sat themselves down and prepared their lunches.

Kid stared at her incredulously. "And they say you're extremely smart," he muttered. "Heavens, no, I am her cousin, and we would have met in World History had my father, Lord Death, cancelled his meeting."

_Lord Death? Isn't he…the principal? Wait… _"You're the principal's _son_?" Maka blurted out.

"Why is that so surprising? Doesn't the aura of authority surrounding me not—" he stopped, but Maka was too late to notice.

All she was thinking was _He's sounding dangerously close to Black Star…_

"Maka." Her eyes snapped to his golden irises. It seemed he was struggling to breathe, let alone speak. "Hold still."

Maka's viridian eyes widened as he leaned over towards her, his face looming closer and closer…

"Dude, what're you _doing_?" a familiar voice sliced through the tension. Kid immediately drew back, and Maka breathed a sigh of relief. She twisted her chair to meet her saviour.

It was the boy with the demon vehicle.

"Already attracting another bunch of strangers, huh?" he smirked. Maka groaned. Not him again. "I didn't expect you to be the first-date, first-kiss sort of girl, though."

Kid scowled. "What are _you_ going on about? I was merely trying to right the symmetry of her pigtails."

The boy laughed in mockery at the golden-eyed kid in front of her. "What is that? Some kind of new pick-up line? _Uncool_," he menacingly growled. "Don't touch people when they don't want to be touched, understood?"

Maka's cheeks involuntarily reddened at the comment and she sank into her seat, not wanting to be reeled into the conflict.

"I am the principal's son, remember who you're speaking to," Kid barked back harshly. He was half out of his seat and he looked ready to punch the stranger boy. "If you would kindly step out of the way and let me _straighten the maiden's hair_, we can let this pass by unnoticed."

Kid reached for her hair again, only for his hands to be slapped down by the red-eyed boy. "What did I just say?" he hissed, and Maka watched as electric sparks fizzed with the intensity of their death-glares.

"What is going on here?"

It was Tsubaki. _Thank Death._

"Tsubaki, I demand to be allowed to correct Maka's pigtails. I will not rest until I see to it that they are perfectly symmetrical!" Kid all but yelled. "This boy is driving me insane!" he pointed an accusatory finger at said boy.

"Why can't you just ask the girl if she _wants_ a crazy dude messing with her hair?!" said boy groaned, exasperated.

Tsubaki sighed and turned to the stranger. "I'm sorry if there was a misunderstanding. My cousin has a severe case of obsessive-compulsive disorder and he doesn't mean any harm."

Maka decided it was time to speak up. "I-I don't mind it," she chimed in. "It's just my hair, no big deal."

The boy made an elaborate face-palm. "You could have just said so," he muttered. "I'm leaving," he said as he strolled towards the soda vending machine.

Kid resumed where he left off, finally correcting Maka's pigtails after ten whole minutes. Tsubaki only sent her a reassuring smile as Maka began munching on her Swiss chocolate bar. And suddenly, she felt rejuvenated.

"So…who was that guy?" she cautiously asked, not wanting to sound too inquisitive.

Both Tsubaki and Kid shrugged. "I've seen him around a couple of times but I don't really know his name," Tsubaki disclosed. "But he hangs around with Black Star a lot, so maybe you can ask him."

"Black Star? What, you mean the boy with the superiority complex?" said Maka, incredibly disbelieving. However, Tsubaki affirmed it, even blushing at the mention of her lab partner's name. "I still can't believe he's my lab partner. How in the world did he get into AP Biology?"

"Contrary to popular belief," said Kid, "I've known Black Star since middle school, when Tsubaki had to tutor him in History, and he's not such a bad kid once you get past his annoyingness."

Tsubaki nodded in agreement. "It's true. Black Star studies really hard for his exams, and it can be difficult to get through him, but in the end, if you're successful, he isn't too bad."

Kid snorted. "Please, Tsubaki. You're the _only_ one he ever treats as an equal."

The teal-eyed girl flushed to a deeper red. "I wouldn't say _that_."

_I see now_, Maka grinned mischievously. Tsubaki noticed.

"What're you looking at me like that for?" she paled. "Oh _no_, Kid. You've given her the wrong idea! _Baka!_"

"What idea?" the ash-blonde tried to play coy.

"Let's just drop it at that," Tsubaki sighed.

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><p>Maka inserted her keys into the door to her home.<p>

She was exhausted, but there was a sense of pride within her that congratulated her on surviving the first day almost unscathed, thanks to a few people; and one of them still remained unnamed. "Mom, Dad, I'm back!" she shouted into the empty house. Again, no reply came.

She dropped her forest-green rucksack beside the shoe rack as she tiredly unlaced her boots. _Time to revise the Bronze Age_, Maka thought ponderously. She exhaled loudly as she walked upstairs, picking up a glass of water and another packet of Swiss chocolate on her way.

Once her bedroom door opened, Maka flung herself onto her bed, stretching herself like a cat. Then, she straightened up and took out a black box from her bedside drawer. Cleaning the tip of the syringe, she filled it up with the glucose storage and expertly injected it inside her tummy, relaxing immediately afterwards.

She laid on her bed unthinking for two minutes before she heard the roaring of a familiar engine.

Groaning, she walked over to the window, rubbing her eyes drowsily.

What made her alert, however, was the image of an orange Ninja Kawasaki ZX6R being pushed into her neighbour's garage.

She caught a glimpse of white hair and a leather jacket disappearing into the building beside hers.

She stood, slack-jawed at the window, staring into open space.

_There's no way in hell I'm living next to Eater. _

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><p><strong>AN: Now that almost every character has been introduced (Liz + Patti next chapter, and one more in the future), it's time to get down to the heart of the story. I hope I somewhat managed to characterize the characters correctly, it's actually kinda hard to write Kid and Black Star accurately...so...this is the end of chapter 2, I hope you stick around for more and leave a review if you can :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**_Chapter Three_**

**_~Beep – Beep – Beep – Beep – Beep – Beep – Beep – Be_**

_Well, it's about time_, Maka mentally grumbled, automatically reaching for the black box. She sleepily took in her daily dose of glucose and almost immediately she sprang to life. It had been this way ever since she could remember. A routine of routines.

Groggily, she checked the lessons that were scheduled for the day and beamed when she spotted AP English Lit with Ms Arachne as the first. Finally. She could showcase her full potential at last.

The clock on the wall displayed 06:31, which was plenty enough time for Maka to take it slow for the morning and arrive at school refreshed and stress-free, no hitchhiking with strangers.

Yes. Absolutely no interactions with Eater and his owner. None. Nada. Zilch.

"Alright, Maka, today's the day," she reassured herself as she entered the bathroom. But a day for what? Avoiding certain people with certain motorbikes? That didn't sound so tough.

As soon as the water touched her skin, all irrelevant thoughts were washed away, and all Maka could think was _English Literature, I'm going to ace you_.

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><p>It was 06:49 when she exited the shower, blonde hair dripping wet on the carpet. She quickly dried it with her towel then continued on with the routine. Downstairs, she prepared her usual <em>Weetabix <em>cereal and switched on the coffeemaker, absently peering out of the window. _The weather's a bit gloomy today, _she thought vacantly. Did she even own an umbrella?

The morning dragged on lazily and it was only until the clock chimed 07:30 did Maka make a move from reading her book. She reluctantly put it down and shoved it inside her backpack, rattling her keys playfully before she tucked them inside as well.

Opening the door, she pocketed her keys, which prompted her to look down on the doorstep.

There was a flower. A blue one, with five petals and a long stalk. She cringed, remembering the multiple bouquets her father had presented to her mother as a way of apologizing for his known escapades with other women abandoned on the window, left to wilt and rot.

Nevertheless, she picked it up, and gently tucked it into the front pocket of her bag.

Shrugging, her bag, she started to walk. _Who could have given it? _Maka thought wistfully. _Is it even for me? What does it _mean_?_

"Yo, new girl!"

_Maybe I should ask Professor Stein… He seems to know a lot about botany…_

"H-Hey! You just blanked me?"

_Or maybe I can ask Ms. Marie since she said she did gardening…_

"That's it. I'm going to run into you."

_Tsubaki looks like she would know…and maybe even Kid…Black Star no wa—_

"WATCH OOUUTTT!" a voice interrupted her deep thoughts.

She turned swiftly, but not swift enough, as a blur of white, orange, red, and black hustled her to the floor.

Her bag opened, spilling out her not-so-secret chocolate stash onto the pavement as she groaned and sat up.

"What…" she caught a cloudy glimpse of the projectile that had shoved her so forcefully. Instantaneously, she jolted awake. "WHAT THE HELL?!"

The boy on the ground grimaced as he too sat upright. "And you're not even wearing headphones."

Maka stood confused for a moment, before snapping out of her daze. "_What_? Why did you just push me to the floor? Explain yourself!" she demanded, furious.

The boy put his hands up in mock-surrender. "Hey, don't blame _me_. I shouted over to you and you didn't answer so…" he shrugged, infuriating Maka even more.

"So you just thought you'd slam into me to get my attention?!"

He smirked devilishly, nodding. His vermillion eyes were alight with amusement.

"You're unbelievable," Maka managed to sputter out, cheeks flushed from that incredibly sexy smirk he had given her (though she wouldn't admit to it).

"That's my middle name," he grinned, pulling himself up. His eyes caught sight of the numerous packets of chocolate sprawled on the concrete pavement. He raised his perfectly white eyebrows in question.

Maka narrowed her eyes. "Don't say a word." She bent down to pick them up, cheeks warm from embarrassment. Tears were ready to spill until she saw another pair of tanned hands assisting her. She looked up in shock, locking eyes with his.

"If I just left you like this, that'd make me uncool," he said, smirking. He returned the last bar of chocolate into her bag. "Swiss choc? I guess that's cool."

"Yeah," Maka muttered. Her cheeks were definitely flushed now, and she could tell he noticed. "They have good sugar."

"Cool," he brushed it off.

Maka stared involuntarily, taking in his attire. "Why aren't you going to school on Eater?" But the real question she wanted to ask was _Who are you?_

The boy checked his watch. "There's no point. If I'd used Eater, I'd be in school fifteen minutes early."

Maka groaned internally. "What's wrong with that?"

He looked at her funnily. "Guessed you wouldn't understand, little miss middle-schooler," he chuckled.

"I'm seventeen!" Maka blurted out indignantly.

The boy laughed, sharp teeth glinting. "Nice to meet you, _Seventeen_. I'm Soul Unbelievable Evans," he guffawed, clutching his stomach.

_Well, at least I know his name now_, Maka's eye twitched. "Ha, ha, _hilarious_," she scoffed. "Thanks for the help, I'll be going now."

"Wait up, _Seventeen_," he burst into laughter yet again. And it really wasn't funny. "But… haha… no… ha…what's your real… haha…name?"

Maka ignored him, focusing her attention straight ahead. Good thing this mishap hadn't cost her too much time. She'd still get to school at least ten minutes early.

"Don't make me tackle you again!" he yelled jokingly, gradually sobering again. "It's uncool to ignore someone, you know. Especially if said someone saved you, _twice_."

_Twice? Since when?_

"First when you missed the bus, and second when that guy tried to harass you at lunch," he smirked, obviously smug. How couldn't he be, when he had just read her frickin' mind?! She was sure it wasn't intentional, though. Otherwise that would be downright creepy.

"Kid wasn't harassing me," she objected. "He has OCD, it can't be helped. So that doesn't count as 'saving' me."

Soul rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say, Pig Tails."

"UGH!" Maka screeched. "Now I'm _Pig Tails_? My _name_ is _Maka Albarn._"

Soul's smirk stretched wider, revealing his incredibly pointy teeth. "Well now that that's settled, _Maka_, we can walk to school. What's your first lesson?"

She couldn't believe it. This…This _Soul_ was unbelievable, and no book or report or thesis was going to teach her how to believe it.

She sighed in defeat. _Guess I'll just have to accept him_. "I've got AP English Lit," she frowned, but inside she was shivering with excitement. AP English Literature_. AP ENGLISH LITERATURE._

Soul made a face. "Ew, we're in the same class, then. With Ms Arachne?"

It all came crashing down.

"Wait…what do you mean? It's AP English Literature…" Maka managed to choke. _He couldn't_…

Soul nodded, reaffirming his previous statement. "Yeah, dumbass, that's what I said."

_Don't call me a dumbass_! Maka mentally screamed, clenching her fists. "I'm guessing that's because you have connections as well?"

Sensing her dejected and clearly judgemental tone, Soul deadpanned. "I only got into this school because of 'connections', but I earned myself a place on the class," he rolled his eyes. "Not all people are stupid."

"That's not what I meant!" Maka puffed out her cheeks, her eyes livid.

"That's what you _implied,_" he pointedly retorted. "Now are we just going to stand here and dawdle or actually walk to school?"

Maka gaped. "Who said I was walking with you?"

"I did," he grinned, jerking a thumb to himself. "Race you there!"

Remembering her chocolates, Maka shook her head violently. "You go ahead. I can't run."

Soul's eyebrows subtly creased in worry (though he too did not admit it). "On second thought, I should save my energy for practice. You coming?"

Maka beamed, forgetting their conversation about his unjust admission to the school. "Yeah."

* * *

><p>"English is that way, if you didn't know," Soul pointed down the hallway. "Wouldn't want to get lost, eh, new girl?"<p>

"This is my second day here, doofus," she grimaced, shutting her locker shut. Just her luck he was in the locker next to her.

"And this is my fourth _year_ here," he retaliated playfully, shutting his own locker.

"_SOUL_!"

The boy directed his attention to the source of the voice. He face-palmed. "And here comes Blue Pikachu."

Before Maka could inquire after who Blue Pikachu was, Black Star slammed them both into their lockers, his electric blue hair smothering them. _Blue Pikachu. What a nice, endearing name_, Maka scowled.

"Soul, what're you doing with a mortal like—" Black Star halted his speech. "What're _you_ doing here?" he narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the blonde.

Maka frowned. "This is my locker."

"I am the god of this school so technically it's mine," Black Star huffed, crossing his arms. Maka caught sight of an outline of a star etched into his biceps. His eyes widened. "It's a family tattoo, none of your business," he said defensively, desperately trying to lower his sleeve in attempt to obscure it from view. "What's your name again, blondie?"

"It's _Maka_," she replied through gritted teeth. Beside her, Soul chuckled.

"Yeah, yeah, sure thing, mortal," Black Star scoffed. "Anyway, you coming to practice today, Soul?"

"Hi, Maka," a feminine voice interrupted Black Star. The blue-haired self-proclaimed god turned his head to reproach the intruder, stopping short of his speech when he saw who it was.

"Tsu-Tsu-Tsubaki," he spluttered, cheeks reddening.

"Oh, hello, Black Star," the black-haired girl smiled friendlily, cheeks also slowly reddening. "Maka, have you revised for the Bronze Age test?"

The ash-blonde girl nodded, smirking when she saw Black Star fuming beside Soul. "Yep. Do you want to go over it during lunch?"

Tsubaki beamed. "Yes, please. Thank you, Maka."

"It's no problem, Tsubaki," Maka replied. "I'll see you and Kid at lunch?"

"Just me. Kid won't be here," Tsubaki corrected softly. Maka raised her slender eyebrows. "He runs an art club during lunch on Tuesdays and after school on Thursdays," she elaborated.

"Oh," Maka smiled. "That sounds cool." Soul sneered.

"What's so cool about an art club?" he rolled his eyes. Maka roughly smacked him on his arm with her notebook, glaring in annoyance. "What was that for?"

"Next time it'll be on your head," she hissed as Soul continued to cradle his 'wound'. The bell rang, signalling the start of class.

"I'll be seeing you, Maka," Tsubaki cut in once again. "And you, Black Star."

"Uh..y-yeah, Tsubaki, see ya," Black Star uncharacteristically mumbled.

Soul chuckled freely once the tall girl had gone. "Dude, you're whipped."

"AM NOT," Black Star barked. "I'll see you at practice, _Soul_." He stalked away, the tips of his ears flaming.

Maka shook her head knowingly. "Hm?" Soul nudged. "Hey, Maka, can I sit next to you in English?"

Maka raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Me? Why?"

"Why not?" he nonchalantly shrugged. "I know you, it's not like it's a big deal."

The hallway was empty now and Maka started to get tentative. "Uh, sure, okay then. Let's get to class."

"Sweet!" Soul fist-pumped the air. "English is that way."

"_I know."_

"Hey, at least I'm saving you from getting lost!"

* * *

><p>She didn't think sitting next to Soul would be that bad, especially since she would be entirely focused on the lesson instead of him. So when Ms. Arachne handed out the reading list for the rest of the year, Maka couldn't be any happier, until a white-haired killjoy brought her back down to earth.<p>

"Seriously? This reading list blows," he muttered darkly, proceeding to scrunch the piece of paper up.

Maka gasped, disbelieving. "What are you _doing_? You can't just—"

"Can't just what?" Soul challenged coolly. "It's a piece of paper, I'll recycle it to save the trees."

Maka laid her head on the desk. "Soul, don't ruin English Literature for me. Please."

The crimson-eyed boy stared at her curiously for a while, before shrugging and saying, "Sure. I don't get why you get so excited over books anyway. It's just _The Great Gatsby_."

At his comment, Maka sat up, flames in her viridian eyes. "You take that back!"

"Take what back?" Soul calmly denied, averting his eyes away from her fury. "It's just a book, Maka. No big deal."

Maka stilled, counting to 10. _I can deal with this I can deal with this I can deal with this I can deal with this_, she repeated in her head. When she opened them again, Ms. Arachne had begun explaining the plan for the semester. Maka turned her head away from Soul, her fury dissipating once she heard the words "_Frankenstein_" and _"_analysing".

"The semester will be split between individual essays and group presentations," Arachne continued, sultry blue eyes scanning the class. "Individual essays makes up a grand percentage of your final grade, but so do group presentations, so ensure that all your work is complete and elegant."

Soul yawned, raising his hand. "What happens if you don't want to work in a group?"

Ms. Arachne stared, freezing Soul in his aloof state. "Just for that, Mr. Evans, you shall be perpetually paired up with Maka for the rest of the _year_, understood?"

No way. _No way_, Maka paled. But she calmed herself before she could scream. _I can deal with this. It's just Soul. Nothing can _ever_ make me hate English Literature. Not him not anyone._

_You're Maka Albarn, female Shakespeare in the flesh. You can deal with guys like Soul Evans_.

But before the lesson could truly begin, the second bell rang, signalling the start of second period. Maka numbly got up and packed her things, including her copy of _Frankenstein_. Soul laughed at her distant expression.

"Guess I'm stuck with you for the whole year, huh?" he chortled. "Can't be all that bad, can it?"

"Yeah. I guess so," she replied dismissively. "See you around, Soul," she shrugged her bag and walked to Biology.

Soul stared after her, a frown replacing his smirk. "What's up with her?"

* * *

><p>Black Star glared at her as soon as she walked into class, but she was too upset to take note of it, sitting herself down quietly beside him.<p>

"Hey, _mortal_, what's up with you and Soul? Are you dating or what?"

At this, Maka rekindled her spirit. Angrily. "What? _No_. How could you think that? He's an annoying, smirking _douche_!" she hissed menacingly, garnering an amused glance from Stein.

Black Star shrugged. "Just sayin'. Soul doesn't normally hang around other people," he disclosed openly. "Calls himself a wallflower, that weirdo." Black Star cackled. "Anyway, a low-life mortal like you isn't worthy enough to bask in our presence so you better keep your distance."

Maka deadpanned. "Right. Like I would want to even associate myself with him."

Black Star contemplated whether or not to retort in Soul's defence but seemingly decided against it, settling on a single-worded response. "Good."

At the end of the class, Maka took out the blue flower from the front pocket of her bag and approached her professor.

"Um, excuse me, professor?" she cautiously began.

"Yes, Maka?" Stein turned to her, sending a glance at the squashed flower in her hand.

"I was just wondering what species this is…" she prompted.

Stein examined its petals carefully, noting its colour and the number of petals. "It seems it is _Linum usitatissimum_, more commonly known as flax," he handed it back to her. "Why? Is there something you needed to know about it?"

"Um…" Maka hesitated. "Do you…know what it means?"

Stein chuckled. "I'm afraid that's not my field of expertise. Perhaps you should ask Ms. Marie, she seems to be fluent in the language of flowers."

Maka nodded. "Okay, thanks, professor. I'll make sure to ask."

"Okay, Maka, I'll see you tomorrow."

The girl exited his classroom, and he held his hand to his chin.

_Flax…for fate. What kind of romantic cheeseball would give her that?_

* * *

><p>Tsubaki waved at her from across the canteen, beckoning her towards their table. Maka waved back, enthusiastic to see a sane person again.<p>

"Hey, Tsubaki," Maka greeted, opening her bag for a Swiss choc bar. She eagerly munched on it, eliciting a smile from the older girl.

"Kid's asking if you want to come to his art club this lunch time," said Tsubaki, laying out her Japanese bento. "If you have time, that is. You can meet Liz and Patti as well."

At the mention of the unfamiliar names, Maka stopped munching. "Who're they?"

Tsubaki giggled. "Liz is head cheerleader, but she's a great designer. She couldn't fit Art into her electives so she attends Kid's club instead, and Patti is her younger twin by one minute, she goes wherever Liz goes, but she's also interested in web design."

Maka smiled softly. "They sound really nice. Sure, I'll come."

Tsubaki breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much, it means a lot to Kid."

"No problem, I do like trying new things."

All of a sudden, the PA system booted up, the screeching of feedback deafening the students' ears for a moment.

"Will Maka Albarn report to the principal's office immediately? Repeat, Maka Albarn, the principal has requested you to come to his office immediately," the system spoke, the owner of the voice quite obviously Stein. But Maka was too shaken up to comprehend. And Tsubaki was staring at her worriedly. What had she done?

Soul passed by her, holding his lunch try possessively when the announcement resounded throughout the entire school. He whistled. "What have you done now, new girl? They don't call him Lord Death for nothing."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Well, here's your Valentine's Day weekend gift, even though it's not much. The chapters are getting progressively longer...and choppier... I should fix that... Anyway, please leave a kind review if you have the time :) have a nice day/night/afternoon/evening! **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: You guys are seriously the best, thank you for your reviews :) This chapter has flashbacks in italics, and it's sort of a Maka-centric chapter, but I still hope you like it ^_^**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter Four<strong>_

Ms Marie clapped her hands to obtain some sort of order in the class as Maka walked in, still shaken up from her previous encounter with Lord Death. She noticed Tsubaki and Kid opening up their textbooks to the page number scribbled on the board, an empty seat reserved for her beside Tsubaki.

She slowly approached them, setting her books down on the desk. Tsubaki looked at her in worry, gently placing her hand on her shoulder. "Is everything alright?" she whispered delicately.

Maka nodded, attempting a reassuring smile but failing. "Yeah, I wasn't in trouble or anything so I'm okay."

Kid leaned over Tsubaki's desk, his golden eyes piercing into Maka's. He stared at her for a few heartbeats and then withdrew slowly, choosing instead to focus on the lesson. Ms Marie was passing around their Bronze Age answer sheets.

"Alright, kids, it's time to know who really pays attention to my class!" she chirped, winking at Maka as she passed her the paper.

The test began, lasting half an hour, but Maka finished in fifteen, which was plenty enough time to ponder about the stressing conversation she had had with the principal, and her biology professor.

* * *

><p><em>"Come in, Ms Albarn!" Lord Death beckoned her into his office friendlily. He was dressed in all black and white, like Kid, and suddenly she knew just where Kid had gotten his fashion sense. The only thing that didn't match was Lord Death's apparent asymmetry in the way his tie was way too crooked and his socks were mismatched, but Maka guessed that was to make the students feel slightly more comfortable talking to him. He did have quite a severe face.<em>

_Maka sat herself down in front of his desk, twiddling her thumbs in suspense. She was somehow feeling guilty, but what she done? It was only her second day…_

_"Stein should be here any second now," he crookedly grinned at her. _

_She halted her thoughts. Stein? Why would…Was this about the flax?_

_"Ah, here he comes."_

_The door creaked open. Her strange professor walked in._

_"Maka, I asked you to come here to check on your legal documents," Lord Death began. "Your academic applications are all very good and extraordinary, which is why you've been accepted to attend DCHS, but your other documents have not been very clear. Would you please care to explain these?" he handed over a file containing her mother and father's profiles._

_"These are my parents," Maka frowned._

_"Do you live with them?" Stein chimed in monotonously, leaning against the wall next to the window, to Maka's right._

_The ash-blonde shook her head morosely, but didn't clarify._

_Lord Death stared at her hardly before presenting the next file. "It states here that you have a medical condition, Maka. A form of reverse diabetes?" _

_ The girl nodded. "I was diagnosed when I was born."_

_Stein also nodded. "Congenital hyperinsulinism, I'm presuming. Quite rare, especially in this part of the continent."_

_"And you say you do not live with your parents? Who takes care of you, then?" Lord Death continued._

_"No-one," Maka answered quietly. "Just me."_

_There was silence for a while, the shock of her revelation only slowly sinking in. _

* * *

><p>Once Ms Marie had collected in their test papers, she set them all their homework. Something to do with the next topic in early complex societies. And it felt like she should care about it, but she couldn't, and that worried her.<p>

Her home problems weren't supposed to interfere with her schoolwork. They never did before, so why was she letting them now?

"Maka, are you sure you're alright?" Tsubaki's forehead creased as she inquired after her wellbeing. The lesson was over, and only her, Ms Marie, and Kid remained in the classroom.

"I'm sure, Tsubaki, no worries," she grinned convincingly. "I'm sorry I couldn't attend your art club, Kid."

The principal's son only shook his head. "There's no need to apologize. There's always Thursday," he said. "Plus, Liz and Patti are kind of excited to meet you, thanks to Tsubaki's gossiping tendencies," he smirked at his cousin.

Tsubaki grimaced, but it quickly turned into a smirk mirroring his. "Oh, yes, and I'm sure Maka would _love_ to know what _you've_ been confessing to me about _your_ _undying_ love for—"

"It's _not _undying," Kid growled. "That's insulting my name. And I'd prefer for you not to speak a _word_ about it, Tsubaki, whatever you're implying."

"Oh, I think you know what I'm implying," Tsubaki wiggled her sleek black eyebrows. Maka giggled. "See? Even Maka's enjoying your discomfort."

Kid scowled. "Well I'm glad Maka's enjoying it, but I must cut it short. I have swimming practice commencing in eight minutes."

Maka chuckled. "Three guesses say that your preferred stroke is the butterfly?"

"_It's perfectly symmetrical_," Kid swooned, fanning his face jokingly. "Anyway, aren't you also supposed to have hurdles practice today, Tsubaki?"

The black-haired girl shook her head. "That's tomorrow. You know how Sid likes to split his time with the track team and the basketball squad."

Kid frowned. "I see. Well then, I'll see you and dad at home, Tsubaki. I must be off. Goodbye, Maka." He turned to leave, Tsubaki following after him.

"Bye, Kid. Bye, Tsubaki," Maka waved at their retreating forms. She was honestly jealous of their sporty commitments. If only her glucose didn't get eaten up every few hours she would have loved to be part of the track team. Her dad was the best sprinter in all of DCHS, and her mom had been the star player of the girls' hockey team.

The only thing Maka was ever good at was studying, and reading books.

Ms Marie was also almost out of the door until Maka stopped her. "Ms Marie, could you tell me what it means if someone gives you a flax flower?"

The caramel-eyed teacher tilted her head to the side in thought. "Flax? Like the maiden's flaxen hair?"

The image of Kid leaning over towards her flashed in her head. _"If you would kindly step out of the way and let me straighten the maiden's hair, we can let this pass by unnoticed."_ She was sure it meant nothing. But the wording was definitely strange.

"Ah, I remember!" Ms Marie giggled. "It means _'I feel your kindness_'. But I prefer it's other meaning."

"What is it?" Maka's green eyes widened in curiosity.

"Fate. Flax means fate," Ms Marie smiled.

_Fate? But…how? _

* * *

><p>Maka walked down the silent hallways of the school, clutching her textbooks to her chest.<p>

She passed by the science labs, peering conspicuously inside Professor Stein's room. The scientist sat mesmerized in front of a computer, the white screen reflecting off his glasses. His hands were furiously typing away at something, and he didn't even need to look down to glance at the keyboard.

_I guess I better not disturb him_, Maka decided, continuing to walk down to the indoor gym. It was the only part of the school she hadn't been to, and she thought it was sort of nice to observe people who can do the things that you couldn't.

The steel-blue doors of the gymnasium were wide-open, inviting observers inside. Maka stood at the doorway, only hoping to catch a glimpse of whatever was going on.

It was huge. The space seemed to stretch out for miles, and the bleachers were longer than she could have imagined, seeing as her 'imagination' only came from _High School Musical _movies.

"OI, RUNG! PASS THE GODDAMN BALL!"

Maka flinched. That was startlingly loud. She stepped further inside, now getting a clear view of the happenings.

A boy was arguing with who she presumed was the coach, yelling loudly about how he'll burn him up if he doesn't stop shouting. _So rude_, Maka commented absently. She guessed the boy was Rung, or as his friends shouted at him, Kilik. The coach was shouting something back at him, but now Maka's attention was entirely focused on the sweating bodies of Black Star and Soul panting beside each other.

Soul's white hair was matted with sweat, his tanned arms glistening as he moved. Maka couldn't deny it was slightly disgusting yet surprisingly attractive at the same time, and the times she'd woken up in cold sweat after an episode had taught her to appreciate the flawed sides of others.

She hugged her books closer to her chest, preparing to turn away. She was sure her cheeks were bright red, and it wouldn't help her at all if he caught her looking like this. Plus, it wasn't like she even liked him. He was annoying after all, almost ruining English Literature for her.

She 'hmmed', turning her heel, only to bump into the cold scientist she had seen just minutes before.

Maka stifled a scream. "For Death's sake!"

"What're you doing spying around the gym?" Stein knowingly grinned. Maka shook her head as her earlier conversation with him resurfaced in her mind. "Hm? Alright, then. Let me ask another question. Are the arrangements for September suitable for you?"

Maka frowned. "Yes, _sir_."

Stein smiled crookedly. "Good. And perhaps it would be good practice if you called me Stein." He strolled back to his lab, leaving Maka dumbfounded. Was that all he came to tell her? He sure was weird, however she couldn't deny that he had been exceptionally understanding towards her.

She craned her neck to take one last glance at the practicing players, her breath stopping short when red eyes clashed with hers. He smirked, waving with a deliberate shine in his stare. Maka scolded herself for looking back, before waving shyly in response and finally leaving the vicinity.

* * *

><p>The house welcomed her wordlessly.<p>

Her routine was slowly changing; all thanks to a certain red-eyed boy she'd only met a day ago.

She trudged up the stairs to her room, picking up another packet of Swiss chocolate as well as an entire packet of glucose to refill her bedroom storage. Taking out the black box from her bedside table, she expertly filled it up with the glucose bag and injected it where she normally did. It instantly gave her an energy boost, and she walked around her room with regained fervour.

Her living arrangements were going to have to be changed. There was no way she was going to let a stranger occupy her parents' former bedroom, so she would just have to relocate there in order for them to take her room.

Maka sighed loudly. "Why me?!"

* * *

><p><em>There was silence for a while, the shock of her revelation only slowly sinking in.<em>

_Then Lord Death spoke. "I must ask you to contact your parents, Maka. It seems that they have kept you in the dark with their plans."_

_"What do you mean?" Maka asked, completely confused._

_Stein stepped in to answer. "Spirit and Kami have asked me to become your legal guardian, so long as you are still under eighteen."_

_Now it was Maka's turn to be speechless._

_"I know that it comes as a shock, Maka," Lord Death explained, "but this is all for your own good, especially with your condition."_

_"But…But I've… I've been taking care of myself ever since I was six! I can deal with things _my way_," she objected, tears threatening to fall. "They left me. They have no right to take _my_ matters into their own hands!"_

_Lord Death exhaled patiently. "I do sympathize with you, Maka, but as your parents, they are entitled to make these kinds of decisions while you are still seventeen."_

_Maka wanted to scream. "But that doesn't mean I have to live with _this _guy!" she pointed accusingly at Stein, who raised an eyebrow. "He's my professor! Don't you think that's a little creepy? Living with your professor?"_

_The principal nodded, but nonetheless was adamant in his view. "Stein has been Spirit and Kami's trusted friend and colleague since their time at this school. There was no-one else better who could undertake their request."_

_It was clear to her that she was outnumbered. First her stupid parents abandoned her, and now…this?_

_"Fine," Maka whispered weakly. But she was never going to be fine._

_Lord Death smiled, which only made his face scarier. "Thank you for your cooperation, Ms Albarn. Stein and I will arrange his settling in, but for now you'll have to welcome your new guardian to your home on the first weekend of September. I advise you to speak with your parents after school."_

_Maka left without a word._

* * *

><p>She couldn't believe they had known. They had known before she was ever called in to the principal's office, before Stein welcomed her to his class on the first day. They only called her in to confirm her living status. She was alone, she was seventeen, and she had a life-threatening condition. There was no way they were going to let an underage girl take care of herself whilst both parents were absent.<p>

But that wasn't even what shocked her more.

The fact that her _parents_ had decided _who_ should take care of her was the biggest bullshit she'd ever heard in her life. Professor Stein? _Thanks Mom, thanks Dad. Thanks for picking the creepiest guy in the entire world to 'guard' me_, Maka thought bitterly. _Thanks for leaving me behind._

Nevertheless, she picked up the phone and began to dial her mom's number. After a few tries, and no one was answering, she put down the phone, explaining to herself that her mom was probably busy in some foreign country and couldn't contact her back because of the different time zones.

She picked it up again, this time dialling her dad's number. It rang only once until her dad's irritating voice screamed in her ear.

"MAKAAAAAA!" he screeched excitedly. "I miss you so much, my baby girl! How are you doing? Why did you call? Did you miss me too? I'm so sorry this all had to happen!"

"No, dad," she answered monotonously, staring at the family photo in front of her. It had been taken when she was five, before everything started to fall apart. Before her dad cheated on her mom for the first time. "I was calling about Prof— Stein."

There was a silence at the other end, and she feared he must've hung up.

Her fears disappeared when his voice returned, this time more serious.

"I see you've met my dear old chum, huh?" he chuckled conversationally. "Have you talked to your mom about this yet?"

Maka sighed. "No. She won't answer the phone. I called her first because I didn't want to have to resort to calling you."

Spirit gasped and Maka wondered if he was faking the sobbing sounds he was making, or if they were authentic. "You hurt me so, Maka," he continued to sob.

"Dad, get a hold of yourself. I'm here to talk about my living arrangements with Stein."

Spirit stopped sobbing abruptly. "Yes, my dear daughter, your mama and I have decided that Stein would be the best choice for a guardian to you."

Maka rolled her eyes. "I _know_. Lord Death told me. I'm just angry you guys didn't tell me anything. Well, now that I've called, and you're clearly fine with it, I'm hanging up now."

"Wait, Maka, I want to talk with you more—sshh Sofia, I'm talking with my daughter! Maka? Are you still there? MAKAA!"

She put down the phone. Closing her eyes, she counted to ten. Just like her father to be in the company of another woman any time of the day. She should've known.

She checked the time on the clock. 17:34. Enough time to review her work, read a book, take a shower, and then go to sleep at 9.

By the time she was ready for bed, the clock had only struck 8, and Maka was sure Kid would also be asleep at this time.

Kid. She wondered about him. Was he the one who gave her the flax? It would seem strange, though, seeing as he appeared to only view her in a platonic way. But Tsubaki had been about to reveal something to her that he hadn't wanted her to know. What if…?

_No, Maka. You have to sleep_, she told herself as she tucked her body into bed. Pretty soon it wouldn't be her bed anymore. She'd have to sleep in her parents' room. The one closest to the window overlooking her neighbour's house.

And there he was again, invading her thoughts. Maka shook her head as she closed her eyes. _It's only sweet dreams tonight for me._

Her mind was lulled to sleep by the faint music of a piano being played. She snuggled closer to her pillow, dreaming of soft alabaster hands pressing the ivory keys. "Mom…" she whispered softly, her mind eventually shutting down.

* * *

><p>When she woke the next morning, she carried out her usual routine. She had breakfast, she showered, and she did her hair.<p>

But that morning she went to her parents' room for the first time in three years. The door still looked as if it had been painted fresh just two days ago, however upon entering the room, it was dusty and old and had an antiquated _feel_ to it.

The grand piano to the side of the dressing table was coated with a thin layer of dust because it hadn't been touched in years. Not since her mother left. Maka ran a finger through its side, revealing a shiny black finish underneath the dirt. There was a gold inscription on top of the keys, worn away by a five-year-old Maka's insistent fingers, so she couldn't read it anymore.

She walked over to the window, opening it up to let in some clean air. She'd do some work over the weekend, before September rolled around.

_Shit. _Maka stopped, her arms stock-still in mid-air.

Opposite her, Soul had his back to his window, his bare torso taunting her for being such a peeping tom.

_I'm not a peeping tom!_ Maka blushed profusely, sweat beads threatening to streak down her face. _This was an accident! I swear! _But she made no move to close her eyes.

Something in her brain snapped when her neighbour eventually turned to the window, his red eyes widening to the size of UFOs as her cheeks matched their colour.

Maka's chest screamed, her knees melting like snow in summer.

Soul paled.

With lightning speed, he grabbed the nearest shirt and put it on twice as fast.

"PERVERT!" he screeched, his normally deep voice replaced by a high-pitched squeal.

Maka blanched, chest pounding. "W-W-_What?!" _she stammered, but she was gradually returning back to earth. Angry. _ "ME? _A PERVERT?"

Soul glared, running up to the window with teeth bared like a shark. "THIS IS SO UNCOOL!"

"Shut _UP_. It was an accident! I swear!"

"Accident-schmaccident! Why would I believe a pervert like you?!"

"Soul, I swear I didn't see anything!" _Yet_.

_Wait…_

_...what?_

The white-haired boy finally made the time to calm down a bit, his pink-tipped ears slowly regaining their usual colour. He put a hand to his forehead, running it down his face. Maka exhaled, glad that this bizarre fiasco had been solved, but she still couldn't escape the image of Soul standing there half-naked, right in front of her. She felt something warm trickle down her nose. _Please don't tell me this is a nosebleed._

Luckily, her neighbour still had his eyes closed so Maka quickly wiped her nose with her sleeve. _Nope. Just a cold. No, wait…it's…_

But her revelation was cut short when Soul flailed his arms to grab her attention.

"Just _hoW MANY TIMES HAVE YOU SEEN ME NAKED?!"_

He dropped down unconscious when Maka threw her copy of Tolstoy's _War and Peace_ straight through his window.

She suddenly felt tired, realizing she had forgotten the most important part of her routine.

Speed-walking back to her room, she took out her black box and injected her dose of glucose.

_Stupid. _She sighed with relief, scolding herself for even forgetting.

She'd survive for a few more hours, but first, she had to find a way to wake up Soul.

The time was 07:46.

_Here we go again_.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Wooo chapter 4 done! I've planned the whole story out in its entirety (but I might extend it a bit more if I'm in the mood), and (so far) it's...not that long but quite long... so I do hope you stick around for a while :) please leave a kind review if you can, and have a great day ;)**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thank you all again for your responses! **

**Annabelle**: **T****hank you! I really wanted to make things different, but hopefully it wasn't too out-of-character :)**

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><p><em><strong>Chapter Five<strong>_

It had already been a week since then but Soul just wouldn't let it slip. Every time he passed by her on Eater when she was on the way to school (because no matter how hard she tried, the school bus would never stop for her, and she would always end up hitching a ride on her worst nightmare, or rather _with_) and even at lunch when he would whoosh straight past her to Black Star's table, he never passed up the chance to tease her about that _one_ incident.

But Maka had a secret weapon, and she wasn't afraid to use it.

He always laughed afterwards and when he had gone, Maka took the liberty to stare at him as he went. She noticed he was different around her, surely. Whenever Black Star had another friend sitting with them at the table, Soul merely leaned back on his chair and let them talk, not bothering to add his own input.

She should think it was weird, because Black Star did tell her straight out that Soul wasn't a people-person, and that she should stay away from him, but it wasn't that she wasn't _trying. _He came _to _her - whether she liked it or not.

"Alright, students, your first project for this semester is a group project," Ms Arachne announced. Maka could already feel her stomach sinking, and it didn't even help that she had ridden on Eater that morning too. At this rate, maybe she _could_ get over her fear of loud, diesel-fuelled vehicles. Or maybe it was just Eater.

"You must analyse a chapter of the book which I shall assign to each group and then it is up to you how to present your final piece," Arachne explained. "However, you do get extra marks for creativity, so if you only choose to focus on presenting it as a wordy PowerPoint presentation, you will not get above a C. The project is due in a month."

A boy called Ox shot his hand up to object. "But, Miss Arachne, the more academically inclined students are at a disadvantage here!"

Ms Arachne only smiled fiendishly. "No one is at a disadvantage in my class, Mr Ford, or would you like to volunteer yourself to be the first?"

Ox stuttered, his mouth gaping like a fish. Maka had to resist the urge to giggle, and then it suddenly dawned on her that she would have to work with Soul.

And he didn't look too happy about it either.

Ever since the whole fiasco concerning the close proximity of their windows and the absence of curtains in his room, Soul had done nothing but make weird faces at her whenever she appeared but always did his best to run away in time in case Maka would hit him with another one of her tomes. And she _did_ promise that next time it would be on the head.

"Soul, Maka, you are presenting Chapter 5," said Arachne, passing them a paper copy of the chapter. "I hope it is an interesting exhibition of your talents."

_Yeah right,_ Maka grumbled bitterly. "Alright, Soul, let's get started!"

Soul took his feet off the back of her seat, looking ready to punch her. "Are you kidding me? Why can't we just leave it to the last minute, or at least _after school_?"

Maka gasped as if the prospect hadn't occurred to her. "Don't be stupid, Soul. We have the perfect opportunity to kick-start this project, and I already have tons of homework to do anyway."

"Fine, have it your way," Soul muttered grumpily, leaning his head forward on the desk. "But I'm not doing anything until _after_ school so you better do a lot."

If there was any kind of person she hated more than disloyal, back-stabbing cheaters, it was slackers.

Maka's fingers twitched for her book just in time for Soul to notice and press himself against the wall to back away.

"Alright, alright! I'll do some nerdy work with you!" he all but screamed, relaxing only when Maka out down the book.

"Oh look here, Soul appears to be _whipped_," Ox sniggered with his partner Harvar. Soul flashed them a death-glare, baring his teeth like a dog.

"Why you little—"

"Finish that sentence, Soul, and it's on your head."

Soul whimpered tamely. Ox enhanced the volume of his laughter.

"You make me look so uncool, Maka," Soul sulked as he grabbed the piece of paper Arachne had given them. "What's this story even about?"

Maka sighed in exasperation. "This is the part where the monster gets created. You see? Here it says '_by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs'_. That means Frankenstein was successful."

"Eh? Frankenstein's the name of the monster, stupid," he smirked, and Maka genuinely wanted to smack him on the head for being so smug over an incorrect fact.

"No, _doofus_, Frankenstein's the doctor. Everyone knows that!" Maka chided him. "Ugh. You know what? Just let me do the work."

"Finally."

"Don't push it."

"Fine." A pause. "Pervert."

"MAKA-CHOP!"

"S_HIT! THAT HURTS!"_

* * *

><p>"You're lucky the school nurse is hot," Soul groaned as he rubbed his head sorely. "Otherwise, I'd have killed you on the spot."<p>

"_Right_," Maka stifled a chuckle. He looked so pitiful and cute sitting on the bed cradling his head. _Wait a second…'cute'?_

"Yo, why are you so red all of a sudden? Thinking of me?" he grinned cheekily. Maka only warmed further.

"N-No! Why…?"

His red eyes laughed as the curtains drew back, revealing the school nurse.

"Ms Medu—_Stein?_" Soul yelled. "Aw, man, and I thought Ms Medusa would…"

Maka stared hardly at the silver-haired professor with a screw on his head. He seemed to grin back, irritating the ash-blonde severely.

"Ms Medusa has had to call in sick today and I am merely taking her place," Stein explained to Soul, walking over to the desk to record this appointment.

"What good is a nurse who's always sick?" Soul mumbled as he continued to rub his head.

"Would you quit doing that? It's only going to make it worse," said Maka.

"_You're_ the one who made it like this in the first place!" Soul retorted.

"Honestly, you two behave like such toddlers," Stein dispassionately commented from his desk. Using his swivel chair, he travelled smoothly over to Soul, pressing his hand to the back of his skull.

"OW!" Soul yelled, shutting his eyes in pain. "Your hands are frickin' cold."

"Strange how this is the first time you've ever been to the nurses' office, Soul," said Stein as he ran some ointment through Soul's soft white hair.

_Hold on a sec… '_soft'_? Where'd that come from?_

"It will result in a bump and some soreness but your brain is still intact and functioning, or would you like me to look deeper just in case?"

Soul paled, standing up abruptly. "Um, no thanks, professor, I'm good. Let's go, Maka."

"Not so fast; I would like Ms Albarn to stay for a moment, if you would please. Unless she would like for you to stay in the room while we…discuss things…" Stein raised an eyebrow towards the ash-blonde girl who was still mentally arguing whether Soul's hair was indeed soft or not. "Maka?"

"Oh! Erm… Soul, you can go first, I'll catch up to you later," Maka nodded to her slacking, aloof-headed literature partner. Soul looked at her strangely, his inner turmoil visible through his vermillion orbs. Eventually, he turned away, muttering a 'suit yourself' before he closed the door.

Once he was gone, Stein grabbed her wrist and she immediately reacted.

"Huh?!"

"Don't worry, I'm merely checking your pulse," he stated calmly. His cold fingers pressed into a particular spot on her wrist as he noted every beat of her heart. "Just as I'd thought," he said as he retracted his hand away.

Maka was puzzled. "Huh? What did you just think?"

"Your heart is beating faster than it should, which means it's using up more of your energy. You need to keep your emotions in check," he said, matter-of-factly. "It could result in severe consequences."

Maka's cheeks flamed. _Was he...? _"W-What're you trying to say?"

He shrugged dismissively. "Not anything in particular, although you should calm down around Soul. Anger and annoyance do cause a rise in heart rate. Or have you never seen the _Incredible Hulk_?"

She was dumbfounded. The nerve of this guy! And to think he was going to be living with her as her legal guardian…

"How do I control my heart rate? I can't just..."

Stein seemed to ponder over her question for a moment, turning the screw on his head a few times. Maka found it eerily disturbing…and strangely familiar…

"We'll do it the Bruce Banner way," Stein declared. He swivelled towards a brown cabinet, shuffling through its drawers to find a single item. "Here it is," he swivelled back to her.

It was a plain, black watch. Maka raised a blonde eyebrow in question but she wordlessly put it on. After fifteen seconds, a number appeared on the screen: 61. "What does it mean?"

"It counts your heart rate," Stein explained. "The screen turns red when it's beating too fast, and when that happens, it's likely you will faint from the sudden depletion of glucose in your system, unless, of course, you just took a dose right before it turns red."

Maka creased her eyebrows in thought. "So…all I have to do is keep my heartbeat normal and eat some sugar whenever it beats too fast?"

"It'd be convenient if you carried around some chocolate bars or a sugar drink."

Maka grinned. "Already taken care of."

* * *

><p>The club had started without her as Stein's last-minute appointment had run into her lunch break.<p>

Tsubaki was seated beside two girls that she had met last Thursday: Liz and her twin Patti. They were eagerly scribbling away at their sketchbooks, following the theme that Kid had scrawled on the board. Last time it had been 'Squares', and now it seemed this week it was 'Equilateral Triangles'. Trust Kid to make it incredibly specific.

"Sorry I'm late I—"

"Maka Albarn, unpunctuality is a sin unless you are eight minutes late!" Kid bellowed as soon as she made herself visible to the 'class'. It was such a small club since Kid's incessant ramblings about symmetry turned off a lot of people on the first day. No one wanted to be in an art club that only focused on geometrical shapes. But Maka, Tsubaki, Liz and Patti had all stayed just to cheer the monochrome boy up. Plus, Liz said that abstract would never help her in her field of design, although Maka suspected something else entirely. "You may sit in the stool of shame."

_Stool of what now?_ "Um, Kid, there _is_ no 'stool of shame," Liz interjected, index finger pointed towards the ceiling to emphasize her point.

Liz Thompson was, simply put, gorgeous, and that came from everyone who met her, from girls to guys to dogs being walked on the street. She was definitely well endowed and athletic to boot, which made sense since she was the captain of the cheerleading squad. But despite those movies about cranky, vanity-obsessed girls who shouted 'Give me an A!' in those annoying high-pitched voices of theirs, Liz completely defied all stereotypes.

Simply put, she was a geek, except in an arty kind of way. Kind of like Kid.

Patti Thompson was different, though. Although they were twins, they couldn't be any more separate. Sure, their sisterly bond was strong and it existed, but she appeared differently and she acted differently. Liz was level-headed and quite mature (but very easily scared, as Patti had revealed when they had met Maka) whilst Patti was like a six-year-old perpetually stuck in a seventeen-year-old's body. And there was no question that she had a seventeen-year-old body. She was definitely developed.

"No matter, you shall be excused this time, Maka Albarn," Kid announced as Tsubaki gave her a welcoming smile.

She liked Tsubaki. She was really kind and gentle towards her, like the older sister she never had, and it made Maka feel as if she had found herself her own family, one that would surpass the old one.

Patti held up her paper. "KID! I'M DONE, COME LOOK!"

Kid scowled at the volume of her voice but nonetheless stalked over to her table. "Patti, this is _disgusting_! None of your lines are straight and the angles are disproportionate! These aren't equilateral triangles, these are _scalene_."

Patti snatched her paper back in annoyance. "Be that way! Who cares if it's all wibbly-wobbly, it could just be _abstract_!"

Everyone dropped their pencils and turned to stare at Kid, whose already pale face turned even paler, matching the clean canvas on the easel next to him.

Patti crossed her arms indignantly, a smug look on her face.

"Kid, are you alright?" Tsubaki inquired gently.

"I'm fine, Tsubaki," his voice wavered for a second, but it still conveyed his sharpness and authoritative aura.

"Are you sure?" Liz pressed further.

Kid mechanically turned his head to look at Liz and immediately snapped out of his trance. He brushed the imaginary dust on his black-and-white suit off, clearing his throat as he said, "I'm fine now."

Liz, Tsubaki, and Maka all let out a sigh of relief.

And then all hell broke loose.

"TAKE IT BACK!" Kid screamed at the blonde-haired, blue-eyed tomboy.

"_NEVER_! UNLESS YOU SAY MY DRAWING IS NICE AND AMAZING AND PATTI IS AWESOME!" Patti screeched back.

"YOU LITTLE—"

"Kid! Just say it," Liz patted his back in support. Her touch seemed to make him straighten his posture instantly and he grimaced at the task before him.

He sighed, clearing his throat once more.

"Pattiyourdrawingisniceandamazingandyou'reawesome," he muttered irately, "not."

"I HEARD THAT!" Patti yelled. "But yeah, okay, I take it back."

"_Good_," Liz pronounced. "Now if this just stopped happening every club session everything would be just fine."

Tsubaki giggled. "At least they got tired of calling truces."

"I second that!" Maka chuckled. "Thank Death Liz is always here to keep him from strangling her twin," her eyebrows waggled suggestively.

Kid's golden irises darkened. "That's Strike Two, Maka Albarn!"

Oh, yes, her suspicions had been confirmed.

* * *

><p>At the end of the day she was exhausted.<p>

She had come out of AP Calculus with the pile of practice test papers Ms Asuza had so graciously given her. The textbooks in her hand reached up to her eyes and she could barely see anything in front of her. The hallways were always empty as soon as the last bell went, and this evening was no different.

Maka cautiously walked towards her locker, stepping down the staircase to the lower floor warily. She wouldn't let these textbooks fall. Doing so would violate their value…

"Crap!" she cursed as she missed her footing on a step. The books and papers came flying out of her hands and she closed her eyes as her heart pounded…

"Gotcha," a familiar voice resonated in her ears.

Crimson eyes pierced into hers.

"Soul," she breathed, heart still erratically beating, but she swore it was just from the fear of… There was a beep coming from her pulse-watch. The screen was amber. She needed to… "Soul, can you take out a packet of chocolate from my bag?" she asked weakly.

Soul's eyebrows creased in confusion but he did as he was told. Still holding her light body with one arm, he reached inside her rucksack to find what she was looking for. "Why does that thing keep beeping?" he asked as he handed her the red-and-white-wrapped Swiss chocolate bar.

Maka quickly opened it and munched eagerly away at it. Soul scrunched his nose.

The beeping on her watch didn't stop, but she hoped that her sugar boost would prolong her consciousness for another few half-hours.

Soul felt his cheeks starting to warm as he eventually set the chocolate-eating girl straight. "Sorry your books kinda fell," he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

Maka shook her head and sighed. "It wasn't your fault."

"What are _you_ doing in school so late anyway?" Soul narrowed his eyes at her, changing the subject.

"Ms Asuza asked me to, why? What are _you_ doing here? And how did you catch me?" Maka retaliated.

Soul averted his gaze from hers as a rosy pink tinted his cheeks. "I was waiting for you."

_Why is this thing beeping faster?!_ Maka winced internally. She ate her chocolate quickly, swallowing it all down. "Me? Why?"

"I might as well, no big deal," he rolled his eyes. He was getting fond of saying that. "I just thought it'd be more interesting to go home with a friend, seeing as we're neighbours," he grinned widely. "Pervert."

Maka's expression darkened.

"Hey, hey, I was kidding don't—"

"I won't," Maka said simply, bending down to pick up the first textbook. Soul stared at her confusedly.

"You're not…?"

"Only if you help me pick these books up."

"Only if you ride on Eater," he smirked, knowing she would rise to the bait.

Maka growled, but was pensive for a moment. She couldn't carry all these books home alone…even if she did put them in her locker. Plus, she was starting to get used to Eater…

"Grr, _fine_. Now help already!"

"Cool," Soul grinned. "That's the seventh time I've saved you." He went down two steps to pick up another book.

"You're counting?" Maka raised an eyebrow.

He shrugged. "No big deal."

"Right," said Maka. "No big deal." At least she was glad that the beeping had stopped.

* * *

><p>When she returned to the comfort of her silent home, the first thing she did was set her books down on the dining table and take her boots off.<p>

She threw herself onto her bed upstairs in frustration.

_That was a close call, Maka. How could you be so careless? _she berated herself. She lay there for a while before she sighed and got up, grabbing her bag to look at the pile of work she had to do that night.

She rummaged around her folders before something soft and leafy brushed her skin. She took it out tentatively, realizing it was a flower. _Another flower?_ she thought.

Setting it on her bedside table, she grabbed her laptop from her desk and opened it up to the encyclopaedia. After a few minutes of browsing on the number of petals and the colour of the petals, Maka finally deduced that it was an apple blossom. But there weren't any apple trees nearby, so it must've come from a personal garden…

She eagerly typed for the meaning of the flower and she clicked on the first link directing her to an entire dictionary of flowers and their meanings, dating back to the Victorian times.

"Apple blossom…" she scanned the page. "Aha!"

Now she was even more confused as she stared at the page dazedly.

_Preference._

_Over what?_

* * *

><p><strong>AN: we're a quarter of the way through! Things are starting to get more exciting for you guys, I hope... Thanks for reading, and please leave a kind review if you can! :) have a nice day! **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Ha, this is me trying to fit in American high school customs into my story and not working. I hope you don't mind it too much... Please tell me if I'm pacing the story too fast or too slow, because I'm freaking out thinking it's fast-forwarding too much or not... anyways, enjoy!**

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><p><strong><em>Chapter Six<em>**

The Homecoming dance was today, almost two weeks earlier than it should be, because the football season had ended early, and it was the first dance Maka would have attended, that is, if she could.

Alas, Stein had decided to push forward the date of his 'moving in' to the same date of the Homecoming dance, so there was no chance of going anywhere for the weekend. It was just a stupid dance anyway. And it's not like anyone had asked _her_ to come with them. Well, except Liz and Tsubaki, but they already had 'dates', if you count Kid and Patti.

Maka smiled at the memory of Liz's silent devastation when Kid asked Tsubaki to accompany him to the dance. As the principal's son he was required to attend every school event, be it a game or a dance, and since _a certain someone_ couldn't muster up the courage to ask Tsubaki (despite claiming to be a god, that jerk), Kid had taken the liberty to ask his cousin.

And of course there was an overload of invites for Liz, but she wouldn't take anyone other than Patti, much to Kid's not-so-discreet relief. Liz had told Maka that that had been how it was since freshman year. Everyone was too scared to come out of their tiny shells to do something wacky for once, for fear they would ruin the friendship they had built ever since kindergarten (for some).

At least Soul wasn't going either. Even though Black Star had so _desperately_ tried to convince him to become his manly chauffeur and borrow Eater for a night, Soul had declined and quite rightly told him that "dances were stupid and uncool", so he was as much in the same boat as her, apart from the fact that he didn't have an eccentric biology professor moving in with him.

Come to think of it, he was probably cooped up in his room doing death-knows-what. He seemed like the type to play video games, but Maka was always proved wrong when it came to him. Who knows, maybe he was even into something feminine – like _gardening._ Maka snorted at the prospect, watching as the van Stein had hired pulled up to the side of the curb.

She was in her parent's room, watching it all unfold beneath her. She looked across to her neighbour's window, giggling internally because Soul had installed black and red chequered curtains just a few days after Maka's accidental voyeurism. She could still remember his face as clear as day, full of shock, embarrassment and shame, probably to himself for looking so 'uncool'.

_Beep. _The number on her screen read 90. Maka frowned, choosing to ignore it.

She strolled downstairs, ready to open the door for Stein to single-handedly unload his boxes into the house. There was no way she was going to help carry his boxes of tinned species to her room. And even if she wanted to, Stein wouldn't have let her anyway. No matter how hard she tried to view him as a guardian, or even a father, all she could see was a mad doctor behind those transparently-rimmed glasses of his. Maybe that would change, maybe nothing would change, the future sure was uncertain.

She opened the door, only to be me confronted by a smirking red-eyed boy. The beeping was becoming more regular now.

"What're you doing here?" Maka asked, holding the door slightly wider. She crossed her arms, raising an eyebrow for his answer.

He shrugged. Her eyes narrowed. Shrugging seemed to be his favourite gesture these days. "I saw the van. Either you're moving somewhere or someone else is moving in. Which is it?"

"Why are _you _so curious?" Maka uncrossed her arms, now fully interested… not like she wasn't interested before.

He shrugged. Again. It was starting to get on her nerves. "I'm thinking my curtains aren't enough to protect me from you."

From behind him, Stein silently approached the door. Maka smirked, "Well you'll just have to deal with it," she said. "And if you try and threaten me, Professor Stein can get out his surgical equipment."

Soul's white eyebrows scrunched in befuddlement. "Stein? What's he got to do with—"

"Hello, neighbour," Stein breathed next to his ear. Soul completely froze, robotically craning his neck to look behind him.

"AHHHH!" he screamed, backing up into Maka and shoving her inside. "Get back, Maka it's a ghost!"

"Ow, Soul, you're stepping on my foot!" Maka yelled in his ear, pushing him with all her force back outside. The screen on her watch was glowing amber. Maka sighed.

"Here," Soul handed her a Dairy Milk bar that he had fished out from his pocket. Maka's eyes widened as she slowly accepted it. "Figured you always ate something sweet whenever that thing gets too loud. I don't know what it's for, but it's no big deal," he shrugged, putting his hands in his deep pockets and looking away.

The corner of Stein's mouth gradually upturned, unseen. "Well, kids, I hate to interrupt your romantic exchange, but the lactic acid has been building up in my arms for some quite time now."

Soul grimaced, remembering he was even there. Stein gingerly walked past him and through the door, disappearing into the house. "Why's he here anyway? Are your parents away?" Soul glared at his back, still clothed in a white, zig-zaggy lab coat.

Maka coughed into her hand awkwardly. "Yeah, they're… on a business trip to... Florida… Stein's… sort of my babysitter."

He burst into laughter. "_Stein_? The professor? A _babysitter_? Oh, man I have to tell Black Star—"

"You won't tell anyone anything," Maka muttered darkly, taking out her book from behind. It was her dad's copy of _Moby Dick_, although her mother had, in a fit of rage, childishly crossed out '_Moby'_ when she had given it to him as an anniversary present, so it was just left with _'Dick'._

Soul cursed under his breath. "One day, I'll replace my skull with adamantium metal. _Then _we'll see what your Maka-chops do to me then." He cackled deviously as Maka rolled her eyes, muttering _"geek"_ inaudibly to herself. Stein appeared beside her again, ready to pick up the rest of the boxes. There were at least twenty of them at the front of her house, all packed with Stein's bizarre collection of rare pickled animals. Only one box was filled with ten white lab coats and grey sweaters and the occasional normal-world piece of clothing. Like shoes and socks.

Suddenly, Maka had an idea. "Hey, Soul are you busy at the moment?" she asked as sugary-sweetly as she could.

Soul had to look away to not be overcome with the sickly sweet way she was looking at him. "Uh…no, why?" he gulped nervously. She'd never looked at him like that before. It was always glares and raspberries, and maybe the sporadic fish-face, but never like _this._ Something was up, and he knew it.

"Could you be the cool guy and help Stein carry boxes _please_?" Maka pouted.

_Damn it! She's using my weapon against me!_ Soul panicked. _This woman._

Soul regained his composure and shrugged, breaking Maka's 'sweet' façade. "Sure, whatever. But I'm _not_ touching any of those jars," he pointed to a box filled to the top with pickled aliens.

"Wouldn't want you to," Stein smirked, pushing his way past him.

"This is weird, Maka," Soul hissed to her. "The only good thing about this is I can copy off your Biology homework and get full marks."

Maka raised her chin up, crossing her arms in a 'hmph'. "Who said I'd ask him for help? I can do my Biology homework by myself just fine."

"Leave your door open, Maka," said Soul as he walked over to his first box. Maka stared after him, wondering if that was his attempt at a deep, philosophical argument. If so, Maka had to admit it was damn good. But it soured because all good things had to come to an end. "I might need to sneak into his office to get a copy of some test papers."

She should've known. It was something Black Star definitely would have done, no matter how many times Tsubaki tried to convince her that he did study hard. And Maka's judgement of Soul when she first met him _was _correct. He was a slacker, never mind how he got into AP English Lit. Which reminded her…

"I'm guessing we're going to have to study at my house or the library," Soul commented as he lugged two boxes into her house. "Because I'm sure as hell not going to study here if _Stein_'s around. When are your parents comin' back?"

_Never_, Maka wanted to say, but she had to keep this illusion up, even if it meant lying to him. "It varies. Sometimes a week, sometimes a month," Maka quickly explained. "But the project's not due in until two weeks and I've almost finished it."

Soul rolled his crimson eyes, wiping his dusty hands on his black sweatpants. "But your ideas are _boring as shit_. They're all words and essays and pictures of old freaky houses."

"They're not _old, freaky houses,_" Maka grumbled. "They're _gothic _buildings. It's where—"

"Yeah, yeah," Soul waved his hand dismissively. The fingers on her book twitched, which did not go unnoticed by Soul. "I'm just _saying_," he added defensively. "It just doesn't sound interesting."

The beeping on her watch relaxed. "It's not like _you _have ideas."

Soul grinned. "You're right, I don't. But that's better than _your_ dull ones."

"Fine!" said Maka, crossing her arms indignantly. "_You_ come up with an idea by tonight. And if I like it, we'll go with it."

"What'll I get in return?"

Maka paused. What did he _want_ in return? _I hope I don't regret this_. _I probably will regret this. _"Whatever you ask, but you have to tell me now."

Soul seemed to consider it for a moment. _As if there was anything to consider!_ "Alright…" he drawled. "Deal. I want a favour."

"A favour?" Maka repeated.

"_Yeah_," Soul stretched. "A _favour_. You know, like a debt or something."

"I know what a favour is," Maka cut in sharply. "What kind of favour?"

He lifted his shoulders then put them back down. "Just any."

_Dear Death, I really hope I don't regret this_. "Fine," said Maka finally. "But this idea better be a good one."

"Trust me, Maka. This brain can do some awesome work sometimes," Soul tapped the side of his head to demonstrate.

"Then perhaps you should give me the pleasure of dissecting it," Stein whispered in his ear.

Before Maka could thank him for helping with the boxes, Soul had bolted out the door, screaming.

* * *

><p>That night, after Stein had moved Maka's closet and dressing table to her parents' room (which she should really call <em>her room<em> by now), changed the bed sheets and wheeled in his own desktop computer, Maka cooked dinner.

It was a simple dinner, one that her mom had taught her when she was very young. _"You have to learn how to fend for yourself," _she remembered her telling her six-year-old self. _"One day, I won't be here. Out there, it's survival of the fittest_."

Well if that was true, Maka had no chance.

She stirred the pot lazily as Stein unpacked the last of his boxes. He hadn't said a word about anything apart from, "Where do you keep your glucose storage?" just in case she was ever in an emergency. And she hadn't said a word either apart from, "Are you allergic to anything?", to which he replied "no, everything is allergic to me", which Maka found quite sad yet intriguing at the same time, like some sort of scientific breakthrough of the emotional kind.

Everything was scientific to Stein. She wouldn't even be surprised if he thought this whole 'legal guardian' experience was a domestic experiment, because that's all it ever was with him. At least, that's how she viewed it. Every Biology lesson. When Black Star stopped bugging her for just a few seconds.

Dinner was ready. Maka wiped her hands on the cloth hanging underneath the kitchen sink then proceeded to lay out the plates. Stein had gone upstairs to set up his computer. She didn't really want to look at what he had turned her room into. It was probably a black hole lit with fluorescent green test tubes. She shuddered at the thought.

Maka stopped at the bottom of the stairs, wondering if she should shout out to him like one of those reality-TV daughters who went, "Papa! Dinner's ready!" in those sing-song voices of theirs. Nope, hers would probably turn out to be like Princess Fiona from Shrek when she tried to sing to the birds. Awful.

Instead, she trudged up the stairs herself, knocking on the plain white door now belonging to Stein. "Professor? I've cooked dinner," she called softly, knocking on the door three times.

"I'll be down soon, start without me," was his faint reply. Maka settled for that and returned downstairs, sitting herself down on the table.

She started to eat. Minutes passed, and even hours after she finished, Stein hadn't come down. Maka sighed, washing her plate but leaving his out just in case he decided to get hungry in the middle of the night. Afterwards, she went to her room and took a glucose shot before settling herself by the window, her Calculus book open in her hands.

"Differentiation…" she mumbled absently, tapping her nose with the tip of her eraser. "D-Y by D-X, 4-x cubed… ah, that's easy."

She finished the exercise by 10, which was the time she would have normally been sound asleep at.

Setting her book down on the old, untouched piano, she ventured to the bathroom and brushed her teeth. There were bags under her eyes, she noticed, though she had no recollection of ever sleeping past 9:30 PM, not including tonight. Maybe this was the part where she should ask Stein about how sleeping patterns can affect her anatomy, but she always had the Internet to trust. At least Internet didn't dissect things for fun.

She tucked herself in her parents' bed noiselessly. The last time she had lain here was when she was three and still not potty-trained. Thank Death she had changed the sheets. She didn't know when was the last time that had been done.

A shaft of moonlight entered through the window, shining on her mother's piano. Maka felt like she was being haunted and was reminded of Liz and the others. Surely they had fun at the dance. It certainly couldn't have been drabbier than her day, although Soul's cameo appearance did sprinkle a bit of life into it.

She opened her heavy eyes wide as a _crash_ reverberated throughout the entire neighbourhood. Groaning, she sat up, rubbing her eyes as she stumbled towards her window. A light was coming out of Soul's room. Two silhouettes. Was that…?

Maka rolled her eyes. Of course Black Star had to make a huge commotion wherever he ended up. She almost decided to go back to bed when she heard a sound that was akin to a cat being strangled to death.

"_I think I did it again_," the owner of the voice 'tried' to 'sing'. Maka raised her hands to her ears, palms covering them. "_I made you believe we were MORE THAN JUST FRIE—"_

_"FOR DEATH'S SAKE, BLACK STAR SHUT UP!"_

That was Soul. Maka could recognize his voice even if she were someplace like Madison Square Garden with the massive throngs of people pushing past her, and the flash mobs. Soul's voice was rough around the edges – distinct, aloof, sets off a kind of leave-me-alone vibe, but Maka always thought it was a kind of leave-me-alone-but-I-don't-want-you-to vibe.

Anyway.

She was reading far too into it. She guessed that was what she got for hanging around him in the morning too much. They never really interacted _at_ school apart from in English; even then he was always quiet.

"_OOPS! I did it agaaainnn~" _Black Star persisted. There was another crash. Soul swore.

Then something surprising happened. The red and black chequered curtains drew back, revealing a more-than-annoyed Soul in front of the windowsill. His red eyes widened slightly seeing her look so sleepy there, leaning forward heavily, her chin resting in the palm of one hand.

He smirked. She was probably too deep in la-la land to even recognize him.

"Yo, _Seventeen_," he gestured with his hand. She didn't move. He chuckled, just as he'd thought.

_"OOPS! You think I'm in loooo-oove,"_ Black Star continued, snapping Maka out of her trance. Soul cursed internally. Stupid Blue Pikachu ruining his view.

"Yo, Maka," he called again. This time Maka jolted awake.

"Soul?" she asked, voice laced with sleep.

"The one and only," he replied, leaning forwards. "I thought of an idea."

She yawned. "Really? Pray tell."

"I'll tell you tomorrow, when you actually remember my name," he smirked, leaning back inside. Black Star had now passed out on his bed, muttering something about a "pretty Japanese princess" or some sort.

Maka yawned again. "Of course I remember your name. You're Soul Unbelievable Evans," she said drowsily.

"Goodnight, Pig Tails," he chuckled, closing his window but leaving his curtains drawn, in time to see his neighbour mutter a "goodnight, stranger" before stalking back to bed.

The moonlight that had penetrated her room allowed Soul to see into a glimpse of her life. The only thing he saw, however, was the piano lodged between the desk and the window. _Does she play_?

"PRETTY JAPANESE PRINCESS!" Black Star suddenly yelled in his sleep.

Soul imagined him with suitcases under his eyes the next morning, and that was exactly what he got.

* * *

><p>Soul's idea was brilliant, which made Maka slightly jealous that she hadn't thought of it sooner.<p>

"So are we cool with it?" he casually asked, hands raised behind his spiky white hair, which Maka recently found out was, indeed, soft, after patting his head when he had dozed off in English.

"Yep," she replied. "See you Monday?"

"Cool."

Maka walked downstairs to the kitchen.

There was nothing on the table.

* * *

><p>Liz had been Homecoming Queen, of course, what with her good lucks and athletic beauty. And Kid was autocratically chosen as King, despite the favourite of the season being some jock on the winning team. Tsubaki had to admit it was awkward seeing them dance the first dance, especially when Kid had tried to correct Liz's stance because it wasn't <em>symmetrical<em>.

All in all, she hadn't missed much. Just Black Star's embarrassing escapade with the band that had been playing, which Patti told her was "so shitty my ears started spurting out giraffe faeces". Maka laughed at that. She could just imagine.

"There's a new student today, in English," Kid sat down on the table. Maka could tell he had turned in quite late on the dance. His eyes had rusted over a bit, and he hadn't noticed that Liz's lunch tray was deeply asymmetrical. "My father told me to show him around."

Patti snorted. "Yeah, that's like your part-time job. Showing the new kids around."

"Why didn't you show me around, then?" Maka wondered aloud.

"I was at a meeting with my father the whole morning, if I recall," Kid told her, tiredly beginning to pick at his food. "And since we were so rudely disturbed at lunch, the opportunity never rose again."

Maka grimaced at the memory of that day. Soul must be really sensitive about those kinds of things.

"Say, Black Star has been telling me you're spending a lot of time with that guy from before," Tsubaki commented.

"What guy?" Liz perked up, leaning closer to Maka, who squirmed in her seat. "Maka has a guy friend? Who?"

"Ahem," Kid coughed, narrowing his eyes at Liz.

"Right," the brunette drawled, quickly returning her attention to the ash-blonde girl.

"It's the white-haired kid with the red eyes," Kid persisted.

Liz quietened. "White hair? Red eyes? Sounds like Soul," she said. "Wait, _you_ talk to _Soul_?"

Maka nodded. "Why? It's not like he's a bad guy or anything."

"Yeah, _au contraire_," Liz continued. "He thinks he's such a _cool_ guy," she air-quoted 'cool'. "He hangs around with Black Star, thinking he's too _cool_," air-quotes again, "to talk to anyone. Everyone on the basketball team calls him a wallflower. I can't believe you talked to him."

"Actually, he talks to _her_, " Kid interjected. "He's an annoying git, why would Maka acquaint herself with such?"

_Maybe because he's my neighbour?_ Maka growled internally, then stopped, realizing she had been about to defend his annoying ass. Because he really was annoying. Slacker.

"That's amaaaazing," Liz grinned. "You and Tsubaki both. For being able to tolerate those guys."

"But, sis, _we_ tolerate those guys every game," said Patti once she had swallowed down her food. "Whenever Black Star takes the mic away and starts his speech about being a god. The only thing I can think is _God, will he shut up_."

Tsubaki, Maka, and Liz all laughed simultaneously. "He really isn't that bad, guys." There she goes again. Tsubaki defending Blue Pikachu.

"You should really just ask him out already," Liz groaned. "You've known each other since middle school, either you go up to him or he should grow some balls and actually ask you."

"I know two other people who've known each for a long time and should grow some balls themselves," Patto smirked widely. The smug glance she was giving Kid was enough reason for him to choke suddenly on his food. Liz hurriedly patted his back forcefully until he stopped turning blue.

"_I will get you for that_."

"Who says I was talkin' about you, you girly punk?"

"YOU LITTLE - "

* * *

><p>Soul passed her the sheet of paper he drawn out in Biology. It had the details of their project plan. The only thing Maka didn't like was actually asking Stein for some of the equipment they needed.<p>

Because they were going to reconstruct the scenario of the monster's animation into life.

"This isn't going to work. You can't reanimate dead tissue," Maka sighed, circling the bits of the plan that she needed to do. "We can't do this in two weeks. Where are we even going to get the parts?"

"Geez, Maka, you're sounding like we're _actually_ going to rob a grave," Soul rolled his eyes. "I _know_ it won't work, it's just for creative points, and then you can explain all the English shit about it."

Maka narrowed her eyes at his crude terminology but decided to let it pass. "So all I need is to ask for enzymes and a _dead hand__** – **_Soul, _what the hell_?"

Soul ignored it. "And I'll get a circuit from Ms Asuza. Simple. Better than a boring PowerPoint with crappy pictures."

"They're _not_—"

"Shh, Ms Arachne's coming with the new kid," he smirked as he shifted his attention forwards. Maka's eyes lingered on him for a few moments, wondering if what Liz and Black Star had said was true. It didn't _seem_ like Soul was too 'cool' to talk to her, but she did see him interact coldly with other people.

_Beep_. Green. But on the edge of being amber. Maka sighed in relief, inhaling deeply to calm down. There was no way she liked Soul Evans.

Okay, maybe a little bit. You can't hate the guy who gives you chocolate when your pulse watch turns amber. Or the guy who gives you a ride to school because the school bus hates you. Or the guy who _waits for you after class and catches you when you fall_. The beeping was getting faster. Crap.

"Class, this is Crona, take a seat next to Maka, please," Arachne told the pink-haired figure beside her who was trembling with nervousness.

Soul snorted. "Is that a girl or a guy?" he absently nudged Maka, drumming his fingers impatiently on the table.

"He's a guy," Maka whispered, eyes trained on the boy approaching the neighbouring seat.

"Hm?" Soul turned to her. "How do you know?"

"Hi, M-M-M-Maka," Crona stammered, fingers white and bony and shaking.

"Crona," Maka replied, voice devoid of emotion as she watched her childhood friend sit down shakily beside her. "How's _Rocky_?"

The boy, who Soul thought was actually a girl, inhaled sharply. "H-H-He's g-gone. I p-promise. I c-can d-deal with him n-now."

_Rocky_? Soul scowled, but refused to cut into their exchange.

Then, Maka laid a hand on Crona's shaking back, shocking the red-eyed boy on her other side. The pink-haired boy flinched, jerking away from her touch, but she kept her hand there.

"Good," Maka gave him a reassuring smile. "I missed you, Crona."

Crona smiled back warily. "Me too."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: after this chapter, I'm taking a break to focus on studies more, sorry, guys. I'll be back in a week, and it'll be regular updates from then! Thank you for all your feedback! They made writing this story more enjoyable that it already is! I'm actually surprised I made it this far (it's all 'cause of you) :)**

**Replies to Anon Reviews:**

**Midnightlove: Thank you! I really appreciate it :)**

**Guest: Aww, I'm glad you're on board! Hope to hear from you more!**

**Chu chu shoe: I know, but Lord Death doesn't seem like a guy who can recall scientific terms at the top of his head xP (that's what Stein's for), plus hypoglycaemia isn't a disease or a condition, so I settled for congenital hyperinsulinism (it sounds more serious hehehe), but thank you for telling me! I'm glad you like the story so far :)**

**rain rabbit: trust me, it makes me hungry too xD *stomach grumbles* That's what I'm most worried about...whether I'm pacing the story too fast or too slow... so thank you for saying that! Hehehe you'll see :)**

**Annabelle: You are literally one of my favourite people right now, you're so cool! Yes, as you can see, I've introduced that one character I told you guys was going to be introduced later, and there will be misunderstandings between you-know-who and you-know-the-other-who, so I hope you'll be on board for that ^_^ Thank you so much for your reviews, they make the sun shine here in England (hehe) **


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Thank you all for your reviews while I was away...! I haven't proof-read this yet, so sorry if there are any mistakes...I'll fix them soon... On with the chapter!**

* * *

><p><em><strong>Chapter Seven<strong>_

Honestly, it took everything within her to actually flex the muscles of her face to smile at him. There was a sharp pain in her heart where it wasn't caused by lack of energy, but rather an ache of remembering what had happened. And, honestly, she didn't want to be reminded.

_Forgive and forget, right? _Maka thought as she absently flicked through her Biology textbook. Crona had hardly looked at her during the entire lesson, instead focusing on drawing scribbles on his brand-new notebook. Soul had hardly talked to her either, but she did feel him looking at her – or more like glaring.

"Hey, mortal," Black Star interrupted her musings. Maka turned to look at him, white lab coat adorned with yellow stars and blue lightning bolts. The words 'BLACK STAR IS GOD' was embroidered on the breast pocket, where his nametag should be. "What're you doing just sitting there? I'm not doing this all by myself, a god doesn't have to work."

She rolled her eyes and shut her textbook close. "A god doesn't have to ask people to help him clean a scalpel."

"I didn't ask for help!" Black Star yelled loudly, attracting the others students' attentions. They quickly returned back to the task at hand when they realized it was just Black Star. "Just clean the damn thing already. And get the pigeon wing."

Maka hunched her shoulders, knowing that she'd have to interact with her 'guardian' when she obtained the pigeon wing. Trust Stein to give them something so abstract to dissect. "_Note down the structure of the bones on the wings_, my ass," she scowled.

"You shouldn't use such crude language, Maka," Stein grinned as she approached the front. He passed her a single grey wing, hardened by preservation. Maka winced. Then Stein leaned forward so his voice was like a whisper. "The food was satisfactory."

Maka glared, turning stiffly away from his desk and walking back to her own without replying. "He didn't even thank me," she muttered as Black Star hurriedly snatched the wing from her latex-gloved fingers.

"Ha ha!" Black Star cackled, driving his scalpel straight through the wing with no indication that he knew where to properly make his incision.

"_Black Star_," Maka groaned, forcefully taking the scalpel from his hands. "Ugh, let me do this." She carefully and precisely sliced the side of the wing, opening the tiny flap of flesh slowly and deliberately. Black Star sat back and let her do the manual labour, surprisingly staying quiet for once. He always messed about in dissections.

"So, Maka, are you coming to the swimming gala this weekend?" Black Star yawned as Maka began to pick apart the bones and structure them out on the metal sheet.

_Swimming gala?_ Kid never told her anything about that… or maybe she'd forgotten. Her mind was all over the place these days. "Oh, um…where is it?"

"At the school, fool," Black Star reprimanded her sharply. "Hasn't your pretty boy friend told you anything?"

Hearing the words 'boy' and 'friend' made Maka stand up straighter. "He's not my boyfriend!" she blurted out, almost flicking the scalpel at his face but caught her grip at the last minute. Stein raised his head from his desk, glancing at the ash-blonde arguing with that bratty self-proclaimed god. He shook his head, displeased, but returned to his work.

Black Star grimaced, imagining what had been about to happen. "What are you talking about? He's a boy, right? And you're obviously friends."

Realizing her stupid mistake, Maka relaxed visibly. _Phew, there's no way I'd… I'd…. I'd what? _Which _boy_ was she thinking about?

"Oh, right. Yeah. Yeah, I'm going," Maka returned to the pigeon wing. "Are you?"

Black Star 'tch'ed. "Of course I am! What else did you think I'd be doing over the weekend?" he laughed loudly.

"Getting wasted and singing Britney Spears songs," Maka mumbled, loud enough for Black Star to hear.

"What did you say?" he narrowed his eyes, leaning forwards. Maka leaned away, dawning on her that she had almost let it slip that she and Soul were neighbours. Soul…_what was wrong with him in English? _She supposed he was mostly like that, stoic and observant. But he was unusually quiet, even Maka had sensed that.

"Nothing a god would need to know," Maka replied, trying to be nonchalant. She had almost finished reconstructing the wing bones, if only she could shave the bird's damn feathers.

"Not true! A god is omniprotein!" Black Star childishly stuck his tongue out, siting his butt back down on his chair.

Maka snorted. "You mean omni_potent_," she corrected.

"I knew that!"

"Sure you did," she chuckled. "Anyway, I'm finished. You can do the book work now."

Black Star walked over to where she had restructured the bones of the bird, grimacing slightly at the exposed and gradually rotting flecks of flesh. "Why'd you always have to be so neat?"

"I believe some people call that a goody-two-shoes," Maka sighed, head throbbing. She was thinking too much. Maybe she needed to eat something, to get her rejuvenated again. Yeah, that must be it. She approached Stein again. "Can I go outside to eat something? My head hurts."

Stein raised a grey eyebrow at her. He pulled out a drawer on his desk and rummaged through it leisurely. "Here," he said, handing her a small glucose packet and a syringe. "Don't worry, it's been sterilized. Be sure to dispose of it after you're done."

Maka wordlessly accepted the items, dragging her feet to the outside of the classroom. These were her glucose storage, and they were stronger than eating a chocolate bar…Stein must've brought some to school when she told him where they were. _You never know what's going to happen_, he had said. Maka allowed herself a small smile for the scientist, plunging the tip of the syringe into the packet hole.

She returned to class five minutes later, slightly more hyper than she had been. But her head was still throbbing. She squirmed beside Black Star, who was rapping the words in the textbook as he recorded the dissection.

"What's got _your_ panties in a bunch?" he asked distantly, continuing to rap.

Maka sighed, massaging her temples. "My head hurts."

"Go to the school nurse," was Black Star's automatic reply. "Only mortals get sick."

Maka's eyes twitched. "I'm not _sick_."

Black Star's similar green eyes glanced at her pointedly. "I'm a god, I should know."

"Why'd you keep calling yourself a god?" Maka snapped, shutting her eyes tightly. _Crap, it's getting worse_.

Throb.

Throb.

_Throb_.

"Why _can't _I call myself a god?" Black Star interjected. "I'm the strongest, fastest, smartest, everything-est person in the world!"

"And you can't even say _omnipotent_ right. Gee, Black Star, you're _definitely _the smartest," Maka rolled her eyes, laying her head on the desk. Black Star thumped her on the back, jolting her awake and flailing her pigtails in the air due to the sudden impact. "OW! What was that for?" she yelled, although not loud enough to attract Stein's attention, thank Death.

Black Star's hand stayed on her back for a second before he sighed and held Maka's head instead. His hardened fingers began to circle on her temples, and he felt Maka's muscles release their tension. "I can't believe a god has to do this," he whined but kept massaging.

"A powerful god doesn't let his loyal mortals die on him," Maka slurred, the throbbing slowly disappearing. Damn, Black Star must be a professional. "Where'd you learn how to do this?"

The blue-haired boy stayed silent for a few moments, his eyes locked to a distant memory. "Tsubaki taught me. Say, has Tsubaki said anything to you about me?" he asked, voice uncharacteristically hesitant and nervous.

Maka nodded. Black Star stopped, prompting Maka to open her closed eyes. "What'd she say?" he eagerly screamed in her ear.

"I'LL TELL YOU IF YOU STOP SCREAMING," Maka screamed back.

"OKAY," he replied, fingers starting to circulate again.

Maka slackened. "She says you're hardworking, though I find that hard to believe – _just saying_ –"

"Shut up," Black Star growled. "Carry on."

She rolled her eyes. "And she always defends you whenever someone says anything against you."

Black Star stilled again. "That's it?" he asked, incredulous. Maka found it more surprising that he had ignored the 'whenever someone says anything against you' comment. "Nothing about my good looks or my muscles?"

Maka glared. "Not every girl is that shallow. Plus, it's obvious you like her, why don't you just ask her out?" she said, excited and curious and dreading his answer. Tsubaki was practically her sister. Black Star's answer would…what would it do? Would she tell Tsubaki? What if he _didn't _reciprocate her feelings after all?

"Why should I tell a lowly mortal like you?" Black Star squeezed her temples roughly, eliciting a scowl from the ash-blonde girl in front of him.

"Never mind I asked, then," Maka continued scowling. "I was just wondering how you could call yourself a god when you turn into a coward whenever Tsubaki's around."

Black Star stopped massaging her as soon as the bell rang, packing up his things with lightning speed. "See you around, mortal," he cackled as he exited the classroom. Practically running out with his tail between his legs. Maka giggled. Now she knew the god's weakness.

Her brief moment of laughter was cut short by Stein, who suddenly took her wrist to take off her pulse watch. "I need to make some minor adjustments to it," he explained vaguely, wheeling away from her on his swivel chair and placing the watch into one of his drawers. "You'll be fine without it for a few days. Mind telling me why Black Star was massaging your head today? Is there something wrong?" But his eyes were alight with scientific curiosity, not with concern.

Maka shook her head. "No, he was just returning a favour. I'll be going now."

Stein turned the screw on his head a few times. "Of course, a god cannot stay in anyone's debt, let alone a mortal. Goodbye, Ms Albarn."

"Bye."

* * *

><p>"Maka!"<p>

_Hm? _"Oh, hi, Crona. What do you need?" _Ugh, it's starting up again. Stupid brain._

"I…um…nothing… I just…" the pink-haired boy gulped. "I can't find the person who was supposed to be touring me around the school…and I just wanted to know how you were. I can't deal with not talking to you."

_You had the perfect opportunity in English, but you completely ignored me_, Maka argued internally. She smiled instead, Crona followed. "I know. It's been a while. When did we last see each other?"

"Two thousand nine hundred and fifty five days ago," Crona breathed immediately. Maka stood, stunned. "I had time to count," he explained. "Where I was. I thought about you everyday. I did."

_"That's the seventh time I've saved you." - "You're counting?" - "No big deal."_ Maka stopped, shaking her head to get rid of the memory. Soul had a habit appearing in her head all the time, like he was some kind of sub-conscience.

But now she focused on Crona's words.

Everyday.

"Hey, Crona," Maka's nervousness was gradually disappearing sliver-by-sliver, like broken glass slowly being re-pieced together. Humpty Dumpty. But it wasn't perfect. Not yet. She didn't know whether it would ever be. _Forgive and forget_.

"Yeah?" Crona turned to her with wide, pale-blue eyes. Eyes that had haunted her childhood for years.

Maka exhaled, composing herself. "Let's meet up at the park after school. We have a lot of catching up to do."

Crona nodded excitedly. "Yes, _thank you._"

"What lesson do you have at the end of the day?"

Crona checked his slip of paper. "I have Music…"

"Oh, I have History," Maka told him. He frowned. "But it's okay, we'll meet at the lockers?"

"Yeah!" Crona responded with renewed fervour. "I'll see you then, Maka. I promise."

_Don't break it again. Please. I'm trusting you on this_.

* * *

><p>After History, Ms Marie held her back for fifteen minutes to talk to her on her Bronze Age Test that she had written over a week ago.<p>

"Maka, I was very, _very _impressed with your test scores from the last unit," Ms Marie congratulated her. "Almost perfect scoring, with only one mark deducted for missing out on some terminology." Maka nodded in appreciation, smiling, but really she just wanted to get out of here, surprisingly. "I wonder if I could be looking at the next valedictorian of DCHS."

Maka's smile faltered a bit. She had seen her mother's medals from when she had been at the DCHS and the certificate that she had achieved from being the valedictorian of her class. The medals had been huge and overbearing on eleven-year-old Maka, but they had been _so shiny_ that she had vowed, from that day on, to achieve as many medals, certificates, and trophies as she could get.

That dream was slowly faltering, but the drive was still there. Definitely. She just didn't know if there was enough fuel to get her to where she wanted to go.

"Thank you, Ms Marie," she managed to reply. "I worked hard." If Soul was here right now, he would've told her that that was the lamest response he had ever heard.

"I'm sure," Ms Marie smiled. She paused; her expression told Maka that she was contemplating something very serious. Ms Marie's caramel eyes locked with her forest green ones with determination. "Maka, I've been wanting to ask about Lord Death's arrangements with you and Professor Stein."

Maka raised a blonde eyebrow. Ms Marie looked so…driven over this. Why? "Um…yes?"

"Are you living with Stein?"

"Yes?"

"Where do you live?"

"Why?"

Ms Marie stopped suddenly, eyes widening. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Maka! I don't know what came over me. It's just that…don't you find it weird you're living with your professor?"

Maka breathed a sigh of relief, either because Ms Marie had stopped herself before she could gauge out Maka's address or because she finally found someone who sympathized with her current situation. "_Yes_. Tell me about it."

Ms Marie hummed to herself for a moment before deciding to dismiss her. "Thank you for your time, Maka. I'm so sorry again for that almost-interrogation," she giggled nervously, "I wasn't quite myself for a moment, I apologize."

"It's okay, Miss," Maka smiled reassuringly. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Goodbye, Maka, do remember the Prehistoric Tools test first thing tomorrow morning, but I'm sure you will get astonishing results yet again," she winked.

"I will, I'll try my hardest," Maka nodded, exiting the classroom. Once she was outside in the corridor, she exhaled, glad that she was out of there. Crona would've been waiting for fifteen minutes now, and she wondered if he was still there after she practically stood him up, sort of.

"Yo."

Maka inhaled sharply and her pulse quickened. Her eyes scoured the entire hallway for the source of the voice until she landed on blood-red. She relaxed slightly. "Soul, _geez_, you scared the crap out of me," she sighed.

Soul swiftly moved from the wall he had been leaning on, walking over to her with his hands deeply buried in his jacket pockets. "I'm guessing you weren't in trouble. Ms Marie doesn't do detentions," he said smoothly. Maka wished he didn't do that. It just made her want to eat her chocolate in double time.

She shook her head, sending her pigtails flying. "It was just something about the test from last week."

"Right," Soul absently nodded. "So, are you ready?" Red eyes flickered up to hers.

Maka tilted her head slightly. "For what?"

Soul scowled, but not in a menacing way. "Thought we were walking home together. Don't we do this all the time?"

Maka shook her head. "I'm meeting with someone after school and he probably thinks I stood him up," she cast her eyes down to the floor, not wanting to lock with his.

Soul only glared. She could _feel _him glaring. "_He_? _Him_? Wait… Is this the guy from English? The girl-guy with someone named Rocky?"

Her head jerked up at the mentioned of _that_ name. "Yeah?"

"Don't you hate him or something? Why're you meeting with him?"

"I don't _hate _him," Maka weakly retorted. Soul rolled his eyes, sending a sharp pain in her chest. Her blood warmed with anger. "And so what? It's _no big deal_," she heatedly blurted out. What was he saying? He'd never acted this way with her before, in the short time that they'd known each other. He was always…'cool' with her. Now…

Wait…was he…?

"Yeah," Soul sniped. "Yeah," he repeated, his tone hardening. "Right. No big deal. I'm going now." He gave her one last screaming glance then turned on his heel and began to walk to the exit, footsteps echoing throughout the empty hallway.

Maka kept her eyes trained on his back until he disappeared off the corner.

He almost looked hurt. But she didn't know why and how.

And that was the thing with Soul Evans. Unbelievable as he was, she just couldn't stop trying to figure him out.

* * *

><p>"Maka!" Crona called her as soon as he spotted her running down the stairs to the floor where her locker was.<p>

Her head immediately turned to him and she quickened her pace towards him. "Sorry, I'm late. I got held back for a while," she panted. She needed glucose _now_.

Crona flinched, a memory flashed in his brain. "Do you have your Swissies in your bag?"

Maka nodded breathlessly. Crona grabbed the flaps of her bag and rummaged through its contents, finally coming into contact with a Swissie bar, Maka's favourite chocolate. He opened it expertly, handing it to the blonde girl who was almost on the verge of collapse.

She took it from him gratefully, immediately munching on it. Crona let out a relieved sigh, smiling. "See? I can deal with things now. More than I used to before."

Maka nodded, relishing the taste of her chocolate bar. She was still breathless, but at least she wouldn't collapse or faint. "Thank you, Crona," she said before taking another bite.

Crona shook his head. "It's okay. I still remember."

Maka swallowed, quickly downing the rest of the bar. She threw the wrapper away, smiling widely now. "Let's go."

Crona nodded.

They got to the entrance stairs when Maka spotted an orange motorbike from the corner of her eye.

Soul was leaning against it with his arms crossed, thinking intensely about something. He jerked his head up as soon as he heard their footsteps coming down the stairs. Instantaneously, he mounted his bike, biting his tongue. His wrists twisted as the engine roared to life.

Maka watched him zoom away and she was still puzzled. What was _up _with him?

Crona lightly nudged her elbow. "Hey, Maka…"

"Hm?"

"Are you still afraid of those?" he subtly grovelled for her attention. Her viridian green eyes were still staring ahead.

"Those what?"

"Loud, diesel-fuelled vehicles."

Maka finally acknowledged him beside her. "Yeah. Sort of. _Most _of them."

Crona nodded, pretending like he understood. He stepped down further, Maka following close behind. Before it had been him who followed her everywhere, but he guessed it was because she was more preoccupied to notice anything else at the moment. He wondered who that guy was with the white hair and freaky red eyes and internally shuddered. It was the guy from English, who had scowled and glared and scoffed at him for the entire lesson, scaring him from speaking to anyone, even Maka.

"The park's over there," Maka pointed to across the road. Crona glanced at the mass expanse of brown, yellow, and orange in front of him. The colours of autumn.

"Do you—"

Maka giggled softly. "Remember that time my dad tried climbing up one a tree in autumn and the branch broke?"

Crona laughed, although there was still a hint of tentativeness in his voice. "Yeah. Or that time when—" he stopped his speech abruptly.

Maka stopped too. "Crona?" she asked cautiously. And for some reason she missed the feel of the hands that she had held all through her childhood. He was the reason why she had to grow up so fast.

Crona twisted his neck to look at her. But now he was taller. Almost a head taller. And so thin… "Let's not dwell on the past. It's been giving me a headache all day," Maka chuckled quietly.

Crona gave her a small smile. "Sure, Maka. I can deal with that."

_Forgive and forget._

"Let's go."

* * *

><p>When she returned home, the lights were already on. Stein was sitting at the kitchen table, hunched over a stack of papers. He was too focused on his work to hear her shut the door behind her.<p>

Maka rattled her keys as she placed them back on the counter, taking off her boots and setting her bag down with a 'thud'. When she had passed by Soul's house the lights were on in his room. She wondered what he was doing, but then stopped herself from wondering further. She walked into the kitchen.

"Hello, why are you so late?" Stein asked without looking up from his work.

So he _had_ heard her come in. "I was just out with a friend," Maka reasoned. She spotted the bouquet of flowers nested inside a red vase beside the kitchen sink. "Who gave those to you?"

Stein looked up briefly from the table to look at what she was referring to then set his head back down again. "They weren't for me. They were for you. By the way, Maka, your test answers are atrocious. You need to use the correct terminology to get yourself marks."

Maka rolled her eyes as she approached the red vase. "Funny, Ms Marie said the same thing to me today." Stein remained silent. She saw that he had labelled the flowers. _A bouquet of French marigolds and yellow roses, for Maka_. "What do they mean?"

"Friendship," Stein answered curtly. Maka raised an eyebrow at him. "The yellow roses mean luck. Someone wants you to wish them luck."

"Luck?" Maka repeated. _Who would need luck?_

"Are you attending the swimming gala this weekend?" Stein continued.

Maka drew her attention away from the flowers. "Yeah…my friend Kid is…"

_Luck_. _Friendship_.

"Unfortunately, the event requires mandatory attendance from me." He paused. "There," Stein raised his head again from the table. Maka could now see what he was so focused on, and it wasn't the test papers stacked beside him. "I've made the minor adjustments. You can have this back." He handed over her black pulse watch. It didn't look any different. No remarkable new features at all. "It's more accurate now," Stein explained as he stood up, gathering his papers from the table. "Just try it on. You press the top-right button whenever the screen goes amber or red. It will prick the skin underneath the watch and supply you with some extra energy. Give the watch to me every weekend so I can teach you how to resupply the glucose storage."

Maka inspected the watch with new reverence. She noiselessly latched it onto her wrist, experimentally pressing the buttons he had mentioned. Immediately she felt a sting, but it quickly receded. And she was much more energized. It had worked.

"Whoa, thanks, professor," Maka said in earnest.

Stein only lifted the corners of his mouth slightly before turning to go back upstairs. "It's no problem, Maka. It's the least I can do."

He observed the seventeen-year-old girl still examining her watch and frowned. _French marigolds and yellow roses. Someone is jealous, and you should be careful._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Oh, Steinnn...your fatherly side is showing through~ Unfortunately, updates will no longer be daily, more like once or twice a week... I'm sorry :( **

**Replies to Guest reviews:**

**Person: ****Aww, I'm sorry I couldn't update sooner, thank you for reading! :)**

**Annabelle:**** Thank youu for reviewing this story :) I did try to make Soul sound jealous, dunno if it worked (first romance story) xD Thank you, thank you, and thank you again! Oh no... will there be another school dance you could go to? :(**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I'm so out of it, guys. Writer's block does things to you.**

* * *

><p><strong><em>Chapter Eight<em>**

_Beep-Beeeeep! _

For a second Maka thought that that was the sound of Patti's car waking up the entire neighbourhood. But no, it wasn't, unfortunately. It was the sound of her home phone echoing throughout the vacant house. Maka groaned in her sleep, wondering where the hell Stein was and why he wasn't answering it, then it dawned on her that he was probably already at the venue to prep for the swimming gala.

She sat up, groggily rubbing her eyes as she reached over for a syringe. The phone was still ringing. It was starting to drive her nuts.

"Ugh," she muttered repeatedly as she walked downstairs. She picked up the phone, glad to finally be met with near-silence. "Hello?" Why did they have to pick this time to call? She sounded like a frog with a sore throat.

"Maka? This is your mother," a familiar voice spoke at the other end of the line. Maka immediately jolted awake, looking at the time on the clock. 5:30 AM. She suddenly became very aware of her surroundings. Even the smoke coming out of the kitchen.

"Mom?" Maka replied, dragging the phone cord with her to the living room.

"I got your call from a while ago, I'm sorry I couldn't call back sooner. Is everything alright?"

She closed her eyes, thinking how much she missed her mother's soothing voice in comparison to her father's constant incessant yelling. "I'm fine, mom. I just called about you and dad's arrangement with Stein. Why didn't you tell me?"

Her mother sighed. "I thought that douchebag promised to tell you. I'm so sorry, ma chérie. I would have told you if he hadn't gone ahead and taken that task for himself."

It was Maka's turn to sigh, but it was not for her mother. The smell wafting from the kitchen was disgustingly putrid and it was severely messing with her train of thought. It was like someone was cooking cat intestines, and Maka couldn't stand the thought of someone butchering her kitchen. "I miss you," she managed to ground out.

"I miss you too, ma chérie. I've already sent the payments for the rent, but I'm sure Stein will provide a portion of it to cover his accommodation. How is he? Is he taking care of you well?"

Maka leaned back to try and catch a glimpse of the kitchen but all she could see was a soot-covered lab coat. "I…guess so?" Maka shrugged, even though her mother couldn't see it. "We don't really speak much."

"That does sound like Stein," her mother giggled. "And how is school? I remember it being a magnificent part of my childhood."

Maka smiled. "It's great, ma. I've made some good friends. I'm going to a swimming gala today, to support one of them."

"It's good that you're taking part in school life," said her mother. Maka held the phone tighter. "I hope they win, but don't strain yourself too much, okay?"

"Yes, mama." She yawned, still needing some sleep.

"Ah, I'm sorry to have called you at this time. I forgot that it's only five in the morning over there. But it's been the only break I've had from concerts in the past weeks."

"It's okay, mom," Maka yawned again. "Do you want to talk to Stein?"

"If you would kindly."

Maka took the phone from her ear and dragged the cord towards the kitchen, pinching her nose as she approached the foggy room. She saw him hunched over the sink and tapped his shoulder. His dark-rimmed eyes glanced at the phone she was pointing to and smirked, taking it from her hands and leaving her to clean up his mess. _What a lousy guardian_, she thought bitterly, nose still pinched. She leaned over to see what he had been trying to do and her eyes narrowed in disgust at the burnt omelette on the pan, an open bottle of '_H__2__SO__4__' _beside it. Face-palm.

Dutifully she began to cap the sulfuric acid, making sure to minimise skin contact with it. She had no idea what sort of concentration he was using and she wasn't about to find out through a hole in her hand. But before she could really begin to tidy up the place, Stein returned and glaringly snatched the bottle from her grasp.

"You shouldn't touch this," he almost growled out, setting it to the side. It seemed his conversation with her mother hadn't gone too well. "I'll take care of things here. Just go back to sleep."

Maka stood her ground and glared back. "Clearly you _don't _know what you're doing, this whole place is a mess!" But the sternness of her tone was completely erased by her articulacy. Her nose was still pinched, so her words were garbled, leaving Stein to forcefully drag her out of the kitchen.

"Go back to your room," he repeated, this time more tiredly, and the dark rings under his eyes were more prominent in broad daylight.

Maka let go of her nose and turned back upstairs. She wondered just what her mother had said to him. And why he didn't return the phone to her to say goodbye.

* * *

><p><em>Beep-Beeeeep! <em>

"OI, MAKA GET DOWN 'ERE!"

Yep, that was definitely Patti waking up the entire neighbourhood. Maka was sitting on her bed, reading _'To The River' _by Olivia Laing whilst facing the window of her room, occasionally glancing up to see if Soul's curtains had been drawn. She really wondered about that kid. One minute he was cool with her, the next he was glaring, for a reason she couldn't pin down.

When Patti had started honking, she put her book down and walked over to the window, getting a glimpse of the Thompson sisters' red and white Bentley. Tsubaki was with them on the back seat, calmly playing with her long raven hair. Liz was on the driver's seat, trying desperately to fight off a flailing Patti.

Maka grabbed her keys and opened the door – noticing that Stein had cleaned up his mess somewhat – and shouldered her bag filled with chocolate bars as she approached them, smiling. Patti, upon seeing her, waved dramatically. Trust her to exaggerate every action.

Tsubaki looked up from her casual twiddling and smiled back at her, leaning forwards to open the door to the backseat. "Good morning, Maka!" she greeted as the ash-blonde girl set her bag down in front of her. She closed the car door smoothly. "I hope you're having a nice weekend?"

"Well, duh, who wouldn't?" Patti cut in, flailing her arms in the air. She and Liz were wearing identical sailor hats that had 'AHOY, KID!' on a stick plastered onto it. Maka had to resist the urge to giggle. "Come on, sis, we need to get front row seats!"

"Alright, alright," Liz muttered darkly, fiddling with the car equipment. She was taking her time, though, deliberately putting in a CD into the player, until Patti, once again, cut in.

"Don't you want to have a good view of Kid's symmetrical backside?"

Liz paused and growled. She stomped on the pedal with Patti's maniacal laughter filling the air.

When they arrived at the venue, the place was almost empty. Patti had riled up Liz so much that they had gone to their destination two hours early. At least Patti would stop complaining about the front row seats being taken. There were only about ten people sitting on the bleachers, ten of them were part of the DCHS swim team.

Kid had looked up as soon as he heard Patti screaming "Front row seats!", setting his breakfast down beside him and raising an inquisitive eyebrow. He was at least pleased that they were wearing the uniform that he had set them, although Maka and Tsubaki would surely ruin the symmetry…his left eye twitched.

"I appreciate your keenness to support me, but why in Death's name are you two hours early?" he collectedly greeted their approaching forms, amber eyes alight with amusement.

Liz sighed. "Patti wanted—"

"_No, _Liz wanted to get the front row seats," Patti cheekily interjected. Kid raised an eyebrow at Liz, who only shrugged and sent him a pointed look that said it all. "_And_ Maka wanted to see what kind of food you're selling." With that, Patti dragged her sister towards the open café, leaving Maka alone with Kid.

Maka shook her head at him, whipping her pigtails in the air. Kid nodded. "I suppose there's no point in sending you back to wait another two hours. Come, sit. Where's Tsubaki?"

Maka glanced behind her to find that the raven-haired beauty was nowhere to be seen. "She was just here a moment ago."

Kid waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry, she always goes to help the medics before the start of the race."

"Oh. Alright," Maka beamed, bounding over to the bleachers. "So which events are you swimming in?"

Kid passed her the program sheet. "Swimmers can only partake in two events, so I'm doing the Boy's 50m Butterfly and the Medley Race, since our school has too many freestyle swimmers to count."

Maka nodded as if she understood. She had tried reading up on what swimming galas were last night but all these races were just the same to her. "So who else is on the team?"

"Just a bunch of people who are of no importance to know," Kid shrugged and Maka took his word for it. Liz and Patti came back with a tray of pre-event food: fries, three colas, and three scones.

"I'm guessing they're saving up the good food for the actual event," Liz commented as she eyed the scones. "Do you mind, Maka?"

"Nope," the blonde grinned and reached for a scone. "I love scones. My mom used to make them for me all the time." She munched happily on the strawberry-and-cream filled scone, gulping it down quickly.

"Used to?" Patti chimed in, eagerly shoving some fries into her mouth and simultaneously slurping her cola.

Maka froze in the middle of her second scone. Kid, sensing her discomfort, told Patti to not ask such personal questions. "It's impolite," he said, sitting back on the bleachers. Liz gave her a sympathetic look, drinking from her cola more composedly. "There's Tsubaki."

All three glanced to where he was looking, spotting their friend in a white lab coat and stethoscopes hanging around her slender neck. Liz waved her over.

"She wants to be a doctor, just like her brother," Liz disclosed as the long-haired girl walked over to them, holding a clipboard in her hands.

"Well, not really," Kid cut in. "Masamune never really became a doctor."

Tsubaki stood in front of them. "Hey, guys," she smiled. Maka noticed that she was wearing Black Star's lab coat with the stars stitched onto the white fabric. "They brought in the wrong coats so I had to borrow his," she explained awkwardly. "Anyway, Maka, Stein told me to give you these." She handed her a pair of plastic socks with grips.

Patti scrunched her nose at them. "Aren't these for, like, verruca or something?"

Maka paled, grimacing. "What did he say they were for?"

Tsubaki placed a finger on her chin in thought. "I think he said it's so that you won't accidentally slip or something. It can get quite slippery during the races."

"Um," Maka frowned, taking the socks anyway. "I'll just stay here for the entire thing, then."

Patti laughed. "Maka has to wear verruca socks!"

"Shut it, Patti," Liz scolded her sister. "Don't make me bring up that time when _you _had to—"

Patti placed a hand on her sister's mouth, preventing her from speaking any further, that is, until she suddenly retracted it, wiping it on her shorts. "Ew! Ew! Ew! What'd you do that for?"

Liz rolled her eyes, wiping her mouth cleanly and crossing her arms over her chest. "I can't believe you're my twin."

Everyone paused for a brief moment, the meaning of the statement hanging in the air.

"Neither can I," Tsubaki, Kid and Maka said altogether.

They all laughed, save for Patti, who sulked with her back towards them, and all thoughts of Maka's verruca socks were abandoned.

* * *

><p>The games had begun, starting with the Girls' 100m Individual Medley. DCHS had quite a strong swimming team, having won two galas consecutively three years ago, but that was when someone named Justin had been on the team, and he had graduated, so their team was sort of useless without him.<p>

They were watching from the front row, their attention divided between Kid's stretches (well, only Liz), and Tsubaki's hourly rounds with the swimmers waiting for the next race.

For someone who was watching her first swimming gala, Maka was quickly bored out of her mind, or maybe it was because the girl swimmers were less competitive than the boys, some of them only languidly stroking through the water.

When the first race was done, DCHS had come fifth out of eight places. She could see Kid scowling on the sides. Liz and Patti, however, were doing their best to mimic their cheerleading routine for swimmers, so Maka stuck out like a sore thumb next to them. She was almost tempted to reach out from her bag to get a book out, when someone tapped her on the shoulder.

She whirled around to meet the person, envisioning a certain boy in her mind. Dilute, blue eyes met hers. "Crona!" Maka greeted the pink-haired boy with surprise. "Hey, you can sit with us."

Crona shuffled over to join them on the front row, his bony shoulders pressed against Maka's, making her blush at their sudden close proximity. "I didn't know you were a fan of swimming," he commented, turning to face her.

"Same for you," Maka said back.

He frowned in response. "My mom is helping out with the medical bay, so I had to come along," he replied distantly. He kept his periwinkle eyes trained on the swimmers getting ready to dive.

"I guess you could say the same for me, then," Maka giggled. "My friend is part of the swim team. Do you know Kid?"

He nodded. "Yeah, he showed me around the school on my first day, but he sort of left me to wander around by myself afterwards."

_That doesn't sound like Kid_, Maka thought internally. "I'm sure it was because of an emergency."

Crona nodded, smiling slightly at his childhood friend. "I never really introduced you to me mom, have I?"

Maka shook her head no. "You said she was always busy at work."

He inhaled sharply, shifting his attention swiftly. "Yeah. Well, you can meet her today, after the gala. She works at the school."

She stared at him confusedly. "Are you sure? I-I mean, is it okay? With you?"

Crona gritted his teeth visibly. "Of course it is," he replied steadily. She said she wanted to meet you."

Liz called her name. "Hey, Maka, who is this girl?" she raised an eyebrow, hands on her hips.

Crona froze at the newcomer, eyes terrified of the intimidating stance she had over him.

Maka sighed. "This is Crona. _He_ is my childhood friend, Liz," she narrowed her eyes at the other blonde.

"So you're cheating on Soul now?" Liz crossed her arms, the look in her eyes was threatening.

Crona stiffened beside her. "Huh? You have a boyfriend?"

Maka's skin turned cold then flushed a burning red. "W-W-What? No! Soul's not—"

"I'm not what?"

The sound of the gun made them jump in their seats as the Boys' 100m Individual Medley began. Maka didn't want to turn around to see those frightening red eyes so she kept her eyes trained on the race. But she could tell Liz was staring him down. She wouldn't look. She had control. She can deal with this.

"Oi," he nudged her, and she wondered why he was here of all places. Then she remembered that Black Star was in attendance too, probably already seeking attention from the crowd. "_Oiiii_," he nudged again, and she had to admit that she missed his annoying presence. "What am I not?"

"Her boyfriend," Crona said beside her. Maka was stunned, watching the boy beside her in a fierce glaring showdown with the boy behind her. Liz was shaking in laughter to her right, whilst Patti was still cheering on the team, ignorant of the real event playing right beside her.

"What?" Soul drawled. "Maka has a boyfriend? Who would've thought?"

"Hey!" Maka twisted her body to finally look at the boy. He was dressed in a red shirt that matched his eyes well and his white hair was clipped back just like when he would start studying. He was smirking at her. "I don't even want to know what you're implying."

He shrugged, igniting a dormant flame inside her. "Interpret it as you want, no-one's stopping you," he chuckled teasingly. "Didn't know you were a fan of swimming."

"Everyone keeps asking me that, I'm just here for my friend," Maka sighed in exasperation.

"Your boyfriend?"

"Kid's not—"

"Yeah, Kid's not a giraffe!" Patti chimed in. Everyone turned to look at her in confusion. She mirrored their expressions. "What? I thought everyone was talking about giraffes."

Liz groaned. "Patti, can you get us some food?"

"No, you get it yourself. I'm not your slave," Patti huffed. She broke into applause when the crowd cheered that the DCHS swimmer had come in third place. "WOO! We're finally gaining some ground!"

They all face-palmed. Liz exited the conversation by getting up to go to the cafeteria. Crona leaned closer to Maka. "Do you have a boyfriend?" he whispered so that Soul wouldn't hear behind him and start teasing again. But he did notice how dangerously close their faces were to each other and he resisted the urge to snap, instead clenching his fists tightly.

"No," Maka whispered back. "They're all just my friends. Mom told me to never trust a man with your heart."

Crona nodded in understanding and stood up, applauding with the crowd. "What's next on the programme?"

Liz came back with a tray full of food. "I guess they _did _save the best food for the real thing," she said. "The freestyle's next. Then the team Medley," she told them after she slurped her milkshake dry. "Kid's on it so y'all better get pumped up. The real show's about to begin." She set her milkshake on the space next to her and shook her legs out. "I forgot how slippery it could get out there. I almost slipped a few times."

Maka's stomach grumbled upon seeing the food. The way leading to the cafeteria was indeed wet, since the swimmers didn't bother drying themselves up before they bought some food. And she couldn't ask Patti or Liz to go back again…

And there was no way she could ask Crona, or even _Soul_.

"Yo, Soul, have you seen Tsubaki anywhere?" a familiar shrill voice interrupted her thoughts. "Oh, hey, mortal."

Maka turned to see Black Star glancing down at her sitting position. "Hey, Black Star. If you're looking for Tsubaki, she's at the medic bay."

His eyes widened impossibly. "What? Is she sick? Don't worry! I will cure her with my touch!" he yelled as he zoomed towards the medic bay, not slipping once.

"He really is impossible," Soul muttered to himself, but Maka still heard him.

_Speak for yourself_, she thought, as the Boys' Medley Relay began.

* * *

><p>"YES, KID, YES! GO, GO, GO!" Liz and Patti were screaming fiercely, jumping up and down with surprising fervor. Maka and Crona shied away from their overwhelming vigor.<p>

"Are they always that passionate?" Crona whimpered with wide eyes.

"When it comes to Kid, yes," Maka told him. "They're his biggest fans."

"I can see that," Crona chuckled, relaxing when Liz decided to calm down a bit and scream more collectedly. "Does she like him a lot?"

Maka nodded, standing up to join them as they cheered for their friend. Kid was doing extremely well, streaming past the person ahead of him with determination. She wondered what could drive him that hard to push himself so much. His muscles were straining each time they appeared out of the water with each stroke, black hair freely sticking to his forehead. This race was definitely intense, and it seemed like it was over before she could really comprehend it.

Kid touched the wall first, prompting the fourth Medley swimmer to dive in.

Liz and Patti were screaming as the crowed roared. All six lanes were splashing all over the place, even soaking some of the closer spectators. Kid was fuming, though. He was engaged in an argument with the swimmer that he had been in league with for a short time, pointing repeatedly at the goggles on his head. They were of two different colours; one lens was red, while the other was green. Now Maka could tell what had driven him over the edge.

"Did you see that, Maka?" Liz excitedly snapped her from her thoughts. "Kid was incredible! That was his best time yet!"

Maka's throat was sore from cheering and her heartbeat had slightly sped up. She had almost missed the warning beeping from her watch and subsequently she pressed the button that would renew her energy. She reached into her bag for a chocolate bar, just in case the watch was insufficient. Although she trusted Stein with his scientific calculations, she wanted to be more self-reliant.

"Yo, Pig Tails," Soul nudged her again. "Have you got the stuff we need for the project yet?"

"Yeah," Maka replied after gulping down a bite. "Stein said he might help with the circuit. He's been wanting to experiment on artificial life for a long time, apparently."

Soul nodded, leaning back on his seat, watching Crona with narrowed eyes. _Just who is he to her?_ Soul thought bitterly. "I'm going to the cafeteria," he announced suddenly. "D'you need anything?"

Maka shook her head but her growling stomach betrayed her, causing the red-eyed boy to smirk. She sighed. "Maybe just a strawberry milkshake and some scones."

He scrunched his nose at the 'scones' bit. "Are you an old granny or something? Who'd want to eat scones?"

"You're the old gramps, Soul, are haven't you looked at your hair in the mirror yet?"

He froze in his position, stunned at her…admittedly cool comeback… but he regained his composure in a heartbeat. "Whatever," he growled, stepping down from the bleachers and shoving his hands in his black trousers. "You want anything, Pinky?"

Crona frowned at the derogatory nickname and shook his head, prompting Soul to go ahead towards the cafeteria. He turned to Maka eating her chocolate. "I don't get that guy."

She shook her head. "Me neither."

The crowd erupted all around them. DCHS had come first place, and she could see Kid fist-pumping the air in triumph.

"DAMN, that was a great race!" Liz relaxed on her seat, and Patti was out of breath from screaming so loud. "Kid's on again in the Boys' Butterfly 50m, which doesn't start until about an hour or so, since it's lunch break."

"Yeah," Patti panted. "Everyone's leaving for an hour. We're meeting with Tsubaki to go to McDeath's, wanna come?"

"Sure," Maka replied contentedly. "Hey, Crona, do you want to come with us?"

Crona reluctantly agreed, getting up to join them. "Okay."

Maka felt her stomach grumbling and frowned. "Um, Liz? Do you know where the toilets are?"

Liz nodded and pointed to across the pool. "Yeah, it's just across the swimming pool. Do you want us to wait for you?"

She shook her head. "No, I'll meet you up front. You should go with them, Crona."

Crona looked nervously at the two sisters beside Maka, but seeing Maka's reassuring smile allowed him to regain his confidence. "Okay, I will. I'll see you in a bit, Maka."

"Yep," she smiled at him, making her way towards the toilets.

Once they were out of sight, Soul appeared from the cafeteria, carrying her milkshake. They had run out of scones so he hoped that she wouldn't be too mad at him, Death knows how irritated he'd already made her.

She was walking smoothly on the perimeter of the pool, watching her step carefully as her boots squelched on the mini puddles.

Soul smirked as he jogged his way over to her, mindless of the wet surface. "Hey, Maka here's your—whoa!" he slipped as the contents of her milkshake spilled everywhere and everything looked like it was happening in slow motion. He grabbed onto the nearest solid thing he could find by instinct and cursed when that thing was Maka.

She screamed as he dragged her down with him into the water and choked as she used her arms to try and stay afloat. Her parents had never taught her how to swim because no matter how much chocolate she ate, it wouldn't be enough to make her stay conscious when she's desperately flailing her arms and legs all over the place.

Soul pushed himself out of the pool, unaware that Maka was drowning helplessly in the water. "Get a grip, Maka, it's just water," he rolled his eyes at her form, which was floating away further into the deep end. Her arms were progressively slowing down and she had stopped screaming. "Maka?" he called. "Oi, get out of the water!"

Her arms had stopped moving. She could feel her muscles weakening and her heart erratically beating in her chest. The screen of her watch was a blaring red and she reached over to push the button, but it was too small a dose.

Her head dropped below water and all she could see was black and all she could think was oblivion.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Y'all know how this goes down, I'm sure. :) I'll try updating quicker next time, it's just this stupid writer's block that's preventing me from typing actual words. I still hope you like this chapter... tell me if you spot any typos, I still haven't proof-read it... Have a good day! :D**

**Reply to Anon Reviews:**

Guest: **You'll just have to find out! hehehee xD**

Stein: **Whoa, pretty creepy but awesome review :) You've definitely ripped out the contents of my brain for this chapter, so thanks, I guess xP mwahahahaha**


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